ARCHIVED - Activities - 10. Where and How to Look During a Field Trip

This information has been archived because it is outdated and no longer relevant.

OBJECTIVES:

To help develop observation skills. To learn where to look for features in coastal ecosystems.

ACTIVITIES:

You will be required to remember certain objects. Exploration of a coastal ecosystem.

BACKGROUND:

Your first trip to a coastal ecosystem should be exploratory and fun. This activity can be done before you start a field trip.

PROCEDURES:

1. Collect about ten dead natural objects from the coast: different kinds of snails, rocks, crab pieces, etc.
2. Place them in a box with a lid.
   

   Box with a lid

3. Open the lid so everyone can see the objects. Give the group or person thirty seconds to memorize what is in front of them. Close the lid of the box.
4. Give them another two minutes or so to write down the names of the objects. If they don't know the names, get them to describe the objects. They must also remember how many of the same objects were present: 3 snail shells, 1 piece of driftwood, etc.
5. Open the box to let people compare their lists with the contents.

VARIATIONS:

You can make the activity more difficult by adding more objects and reducing the observation time, or you can do the reverse to make the activity easier. To save paper, people could simply state what was in the box. If you are working in pairs you can let people collect their own objects.

EXTENSION:

This activity could be a prelude to a classification exercise of shells. See also Pre-field Trip Hints and activities 6 to 8 on How to Explore a Coastal Ecosystem.

10. GAME MATERIALS