The
following programs are available for group presentations. Some are
designed for elementary children, while others are designed
for middle and high school students. Most can be adapted for any age. Other programs can also be given upon request,
including ones for adults. Please feel free to inquire about any of
these programs or about our extensive video library!
Programs for Elementary Students:
Animal Adaptations and Defenses
Animal Tracks and Signs
Discovering Insects
Winter Bird Feeding Winter Wildlife
Programs for Middle and High School Students:
Basic Canoeing
Composting--Nature's Recycling
Earth Day
Enviroscape
Geocaching
Groundwater Detectives
Iowa Wetlands
The Navigation Stars of Lewis and Clark
Orienteering
Skullduggery
Space Food
Tree Ring Mysteries Tropical Rainforests
Water Quality Critters Wildlife Populations
Programs that can be adapted for any grade level:
Bats! Birds of Prey
Endangered!
Fishing Fun
Freshwater Animals
Iowa Furbearers
Iowa Wildflowers
Lewis and Clark's Discoveries
Monarch Magic
Native Americans Prairie Life Recycling and Waste
Reduction Snowshoeing The Star Lab
Tree Detectives
Turkey Talk
Field Trips
The WCCB also sponsors field
trips to the following locations. These trips provide fun and
educational learning experiences for your students. The activities for
each trip will be customized, depending upon your wishes, the size and
grade level of your class, and the length of time involved.
The Lime Creek Nature Center, Mason City Wooded trails, a prairie, a pond, and a
wonderful nature center all provide countless opportunities for your
students to explore and discover the natural world of north Iowa!
Thorpe Park west of Forest City
Many activities can be enjoyed from the shelterhouse, along the scenic
marsh trail, at Lake Catherine, and throughout the park's prairie areas.
The Rockford Fossil and Prairie Park, Rockford Students can hunt for 400-million-year-old
fossils, then walk through a wonderfully-restored prairie. The visitor
center contains many excellent exhibits demonstrating how the area's
land use has changed. Union
Slough National Wildlife Refuge,east of Bancroft
A bus tour through or around the refuge can give your entire class the
chance to view many of north Iowa's native species, as well as many
migrating birds. And a boardwalk gets your class right down to the
water!
Notice:
If you would like a copy of our Environmental Education Services
booklet that lists the above services, along with other services we
offer to schools, you can download it here. Or, you can contact us to
have a paper copy sent to you. Although the guide is designed to be
used by school groups, it can also be used by youth and civic leaders
as a guide to what programs we have available.
Geocaching
Geocaching is fast becoming a very popular sport! It combines high-tech gadgets with outdoor
adventure to produce a fun, family-oriented scavenger hunt. It's a
great way to enjoy the outdoors, and get a little exercise at the same
time.
The WCCB does allow geocaching and, currently, there are three caches
hidden in WCCB areas. To find these caches, you need to get the
coordinates from geocaching.com, then use a GPS unit to track them down!
If you'd like to place a geocache on WCCB property, you need to fill out a permit application, available here.
As soon as it is approved by the WCCB, you then have permission to
place your cache. It must be regularly checked and re-permitted each
March.
If you belong to a civic group, or are a
youth group leader, and would like a program
presented to your group, just contact Winnebago County Naturalist Lisa Ralls.
We can help you out!
