posted August 7, 2008
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This past spring, Sivils passed away, and her family and friends honored her life-long commitment to learning by endowing a memorial fund through the Chattanooga Nature Center that would revive the educational experiences.
Sivils’ daughter, Becky James, knew the indelible mark the trips had on her mother’s life.
“After climbing Mt. St. Helens in Washington, her approach to education was enriched, as the experience taught her not just about ecology but about her own abilities,” said James. “Education is not found in textbooks -- it is the world that surrounds us. That was the lesson she shared with her students and the reason why this trip was so important to our family.”
This Summer, 10 teachers from Hamilton County trekked to the University of Georgia Marine Institute on Sapelo Island, Georgia for a five-day adventure that would include marine debris studies, beach and marsh transecting and profiling, sea turtle nesting research discussions, archeology activities and a cultural lesson from Sapelo Island inhabitants – direct descendants from the original slaves.
The overall trip goal was to promote environmental and experiential education in all K-12 curriculums and create a basic plan for future workshops around the country.
“The Chattanooga Nature Center’s teacher workshops take teachers out from behind their desks and encourage them to learn more about the environment so they can pass along these unique lessons to their students,” said Jim Watson, a 35-year veteran teacher who developed the Sapelo Island workshop and organized the trip.
“We modeled this workshop after the Chattanooga Nature Center’s previous trips, which were originally intended for science teachers. I wanted to include everyone for our trip. Environmental education includes everything from physical education to art to math – you can apply it to whatever you are teaching,” Watson said.
During the trip, each teacher was responsible for preparing and presenting an environmental mini lesson to the group with his or her choice of grade level and discipline. Teachers also had to integrate environmental education into their indoor/outdoor classrooms for the following year. Also, working in a group, teachers planned and prepared the food for each day of the trip.
With alarming national reports of childhood obesity and less outdoor involvement, Watson said teachers are desperately trying to find new ways to motivate children to learn.
“If you take the students outside and apply the same benchmarks to environmental activities, kids will learn what they need to but in a much more interesting way,” he said. “I know I learn a lot more if I’m having fun.”
Teachers who participated in the Sapelo Island workshop include: David Wehunt, Soddy Daisy High School; Brian Gabor, Soddy Daisy High School; Stephanie Parrott, Falling Water Elementary; Marcus Pollard, Maplewood High School (Nashville); D’Arcy Hughes, Lookout Mountain Elementary; Mary Lewis, principal of 21st Academy; Katie Sewell, Ooltewah Middle School; Cynthia Campbell, 21st Academy; Phyllis Copeland, 21st Academy; and Suzanne Haizlip, Spring Creek Elementary.
If you would like more information about the ecology workshops or to make a donation, please call the Chattanooga Nature Center at 423-821-1160.
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