Trip to the Outdoor Discovery Center

 We are so very happy we were allowed the opportunity to visit the Outdoor Discovery Center for a REAL field trip today!  We want to thank our administration for taking measures to ensure our safety during these Covid times!   We had so much fun, and the kids were VERY excited, but still so well-behaved while we were there!  Miss Andrea taught us a LOT about the animals and plants at the Outdoor Discovery Center, and invited the kids to return with their families to do the other fun things they have there!

We began our morning by going over the 'rules'.  Miss Andrea had three rules for us:  Be SAFE: stay on the path, stay behind her, listen to her directions.   Be RESPECTFUL:  leave all nature at the ODC, be a good listener, be a good friend to others.  Be ADVENTUROUS:  Ask questions, make comments about what you are learning, have FUN!

Our first stop was at the Birds of Prey area!  We were allowed to walk around to view the many birds they have there.  Each bird is at the ODC because it is not able to survive on its own in the wild.  Miss Andrea told us that most of the birds had been hit by cars, and their wings were broken or damaged to badly, that they would not be able to hunt, so the ODC gives them a great home.  She even brought out a Great Horned Owl to show us!  She taught us many interesting facts about birds - specifically the Great Horned Owl.  They are able to turn their heads 270 degrees around.  We had a demonstration with our own Annie as a volunteer.  We watched Annie go around the bird, and observed how the owl would follow her around the circle by turning it's head!  When the head could not turn any further, it quickly spun around to continue watching her!  We also learned that birds are very light, because their bones are hollow, and their feathers are light.  They LOOK big, but we saw that most of their size is made up of puffy feathers, and their body is not that big!

Our next area to visit was the woods, followed by the pond.  We saw animal footprints, little fish, lots of seaweed, touched the water, and more!

On our way back to the picnic area, we stopped in the meadow to look for and discuss nature there.  We talked about animals and plants we might find there.

Once we got back to the picnic area, Miss Andrea showed us three LIVING animals.  We first learned about toads.  They have three defenses against predators:  They are toxic to animals if eaten, so animals learn not to bother them.  They also pee on, or sometimes emit water from their bodies to make themselves seem yucky to predators.  And finally, they puff their bodies up to make themselves bigger, so that animals won't try to eat them!  We also learned that only the males make noise (to find a girlfriend), and if you gently hold them up under their armpits, they might make a noise (if they are male).

Next, we learned about turtles and saw a Painted Turtle!  We learned that you can count the 'rings' on their shell to figure out how old they are.  We also learned that their shell is the same material as our fingernails.  We learned that their shell grows with them, and their backbone is attached to the shell, so they cannot leave their shell.

Our final animal was a garter snake!  We learned that they are cold-blooded (as are the toad and turtle), and get their bodies warm from the sun.  They are in TORPOR (forced sleep) in the winter, and will gather in big groups to keep each other warm during this time.  We learned that garter snakes (also called garden or gardener snakes sometimes) are NOT picky eaters, and will eat anything that they can get their mouth around!  We found out that when we touched the back, snakes are NOT slimy, and are pretty cool!

 After two hours at the ODC, we learned a LOT about nature!  We had so much fun, and enjoyed our learning time away from school!  I took an outside class photo. One with masks, one without (for only 10 seconds).

If you want copies of the photos, try copying them from the blog.  If that does not work, and you'd like me to email you any, just let me know!