TAKE ACTION! Defend Environmental Education!

While the FY 2013 federal funding process is still unfolding in Congress, the Administration has already begun work on its FY 2014 budget request to Congress.  After three key programs were essentially eliminated in the Administration’s FY 2013 request, our goal is to ensure that the Administration requests funding for the coming year!  We are asking you to consider signing on to this petition of support for environmental education funding. We hope that you will join us in asking the Administration to request funding for EPA, NOAA, NASA and NSF environmental education programs.  

SIGN THE PETITION HERE:  http://online.nwf.org/EnviroEdPetition  

UPDATED INFORMATION ON THE SMALL GREENFEST!

The first annual Small Greenfest will be held on the Clint Small Middle School Campus (4801 Monterey Oaks Blvd. 78749) on Saturday, September 29, 2012 from 3-7PM.

The festival should be amazing! It will be a great way to get the family outside and to get in touch with nature! There will be food, fun, and live music for all ages!

Food will be provided by Austin area food trailers! More information to come. Give us recommendations of other trailers you LOVE so we can invite them out too.

CATCH activites will be running the entire time! Kids and adults will have the opportunity to race, play on our disc golf course, balloon pop, and even attempt some track activites. There will be 2 inflatable obstacle courses and a rock wall for climbing. There is an optional  wristband that will cost $10 a person. That will cover all events, activites, and will enter people into all door prizes. Through a partnership will out CATCH Committee(Coordinated Approach to Child Health http://archive.austinisd.org/schools/shac/catch/), we will be providing door prizes that encourage being active and outside. Bicycles, camping equipment, and sporting good will be raffled off to attendants who purchase a wristband. There will also be environmental vendors on site. Vendors will be doing sessions on composting and the City of Austin rebate program, organic vegetable gardening, and sustainable solutions.

We will have 3 different bands performing through the festival. The Gourds (http://www.thegourds.com/), One Black Lung (http://oneblacklung.com/) and The Better Halves (http://www.thebetterhalvesmusic.com/) will be on stage.

Please come out and join us! Invite you friends! It is going to be great!

Comp. Notebook, Pen/Pencil and Lab Fee Needed for Environmental Studies Classes (Rosenberg and Brooks)

For all Environmental Studies electives, you will ALWAYS NEED IN CLASS a WRITING UTENSIL, PENCIL OR PEN ONLY, AGENDA, AND A COMPOSITION NOTEBOOK. There is a $5 lab fee. This lab fee will be used to buy new plants, seeds, growing medium, tools, animals holding tanks and many other things. If your family cannot afford the lab fee please email or call me, so alternative arrangements can be made.

Please have all supplies in no later than Tuesday, September 4.   If a student does not have a writing utensil, one will be provided for as long as collateral is offered to the teacher. If a student does not have a composition notebook BY Tuesday one must be purchased from the teacher for $1. If the student does not have one dollar, the money can be made up by volunteering 30 minutes of time after school.

Extra Credit Opportunities

I am always willing to offer extra credit for extra curricular (outside of class) activities involving science, environment, or any combination of the above.  Of course you could always visit a reputable science site, listen to a educational podcast (see Radiolab) or go to a natural history museum. You could even debate for the merit of some other activity to be offered extra credit. I also offer credit for going to science lectures. The UT Environmental Science Institute hosts a "monthly" lecture called Hot Science - Cool Talks. (Month is in quotes because it can happen more or less frequently.) They usually cover current topics in the field of science and science related topics.  I will post about each lecture when I hear about them. They are family friendly and have material for all ages. This month's meeting will be on Friday September 14, 2012 at the UT Austin campus. It will be in the Student Activities Center. The lecture will be called "Black Swans & the U.S. Future: Creating Sustainable & Resilient Societies". Pre-Lecture Fair and fun begins at 5:45. The lecture starts at 7. Go to part or stay for the whole thing. Please visit hotsciencecooltalks.org for more information.

A great website to encourage and inspire scientists of all ages.

This guy presented at the AISD Science District Meeting. It was hilarious and inspirational. Here is the "About" from the site.
http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/

"This is a blog about science. But it’s probably not about science the way you’re used to it.

I’m a biology Ph.D. student by day, and I curate and publish everything you see here. We live in the future, and that future is one in which science impacts every part of our lives. But too many people aren’t taking part in that future. Too many aren’t taking part in science. We must teach science as more than facts. It’s a creative process, it’s an instant injection of wonderment, it’s the excitement we feel at the edge of knowledge. It’s for everyone.

Science is awesome, and there’s so much of it to explore. Let me be your guide. Remember, It’s Okay To Be Smart. If you’d like to get an idea why I love to talk about science, check out this post.
If you’d like to show me something interesting, put me on television, hear me on the radio, feature me in a film... or exchange otherwise interesting information, feel free to contact me here or follow me on Twitter.

I live in Austin, TX, I have two adorable dogs and one amazingly beautiful and wonderful wife. I enjoy everything."

Radiolab Podcasts

Here are some different podcasts from Radiolab that related in a small amount to our classes.

The Best Podcast I have ever heard!

One the best Radiolab podcasts I have ever heard, maybe even THE best. All about eye/occular, brain, and language development amoung different species.

Colors - Radiolab

Genes on the Move - Radiolab

Genes on the Move - Radiolab

Linnean Classification and Taxonomy

http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blogland/2012/apr/04/linnaeus-had-no-spam-filter/

http://www.radiolab.org/2010/jan/11/

Weighing Good Intentions

Is it okay to solved one problems by causing another? How do you decide what is more important.
http://www.radiolab.org/2010/jun/28/weighing-good-intentions/

Biological Curiosity

http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blogland/2008/may/14/biological-voyeurism/

Code of Life-Genome

http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blogland/2008/mar/12/the-code-of-life/

Zookeeper Dilemma: Another Good vs. Bad Conundrum

http://www.radiolab.org/blogs/radiolab-blogland/2008/jan/15/zoo-keepers-dilemma/

Hawk Proof Chicken Coop

Finished hawk proof chicken coop. Fully loaded with 4 hens and love. Awww.

More STEM Camp

STEM Camp at Sea World San Antonio

Summer Photos

STEM Camp campers cooling off at Austin Nature and Science Center.

STEM Camp once again cooling off but this time at Deep Eddy. It was HOT this summer!

Robot inspiration for STEM Camp with a robotics theme.

Newly put together from garden to counteract rainwater erosion. Cacti, Milkweed, grasses, standing cypress, etc.

Native Grass Garden with student seating.

Red-tailed Hawk sitting in our Cedar elms. Natural resident, but enjoys KFC.

NWF Schoolyard Habitat. Installed 2010-2011. Flame Leaf Acanthis blooming in back.

STEM campers looking through the glass bottom boat at Aquarena Springs in San Marcos.

STEM camper testing airplane designs on the PE staircase.

 

A STEM campers close call with a native Texas habitant at Austin Nature and Science Center.

Welcome Back and Greetings

August 27 is the first day of school for Austin ISD, Clint Small Middle School, and the Green Tech Academy. While summer was great, and much needed, it is nice to get back into the swing of things on campus. I wanted to use this email to introduce you all to myself and other changes to Small staff, to update everyone on Small events over the summer (pictures to follow), welcome you back, and give a brief overview of basic items needed for the school year, and operations.

Our school had many drastic changes come about at the end of the school year. For most of you that follow this blog, I hope that you are aware that David Matthews,  partially retired at the end of the year, going to half time, and is now fully retired. He was our leader, advocate, and inspiration. He is spending time with his family and working on a retirement home on Leakey. His knowledge, expertise and friendship will be greatly missed. Even though he will be around occassionally to help on campus and to offer advice, it won't be the same without him around in the gardens.

We also had many other teachers retire, move campuses, or move on to bigger and brighter things. All of them will be individually missed both personally and professionally. Everywhere I look on campus and at District events it seems there are new faces. I am very excited to welcome everyone and get their fresh perspectives on education and Small!

If you have been at Small at all for the past 4 years, you will be familiar with me. My name is Nate Rosenberg. I have been referenced on this site before working in the greenhouse, running Clean Sweeps, and doing our Earth Day plantings. Chris Brooks and I will be taking over the class load for the Environmental portion of the Green Tech Academy. I have been at Small for 4 years, teaching 6th grade Science and Environmental Sciences. Chris has been teaching for more than a decade, and has been at Small for more that 7 years. Chris has worked in Social Studies, World Cultures, English, and Environmental Sciences. We luckily had a new addition to the Green Tech Academy. Our former Assistant Principal, Sherry Lepine, has added on being our Dean this year. We are super excited! She is already working furiously being an advocate for the program advertising for our GREENFEST, which will be taking place very soon this semester. We will have environmental events, activities, live music from some big Austin acts, food, drink, FUN, education, and mostly FUN. More information will definitely be trickling out when we get it locked in. Each of us will occasionally be contributing to this site and posting pictures of the wonderful things going on at CSMS.

This Summer, Small was crazy busy with events. We had our annual Cougar Camp, where we invited 5th graders on track to attend Small to get to know the campus and our culture. They had a great time! For the first time we offered the STEM Summer Camp. STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. We did 5 different themed 1 week camps ranging from Endangered Species to Digital Story Telling. Turn out was great and the kids loved it! It was educational and FUN! We didn't lose any kids but some may have had some close encounters and the Austin Nature and Science Center or at Sea World. After the camp, each of us got a chance to work individually, travel, and relax. Chris and I were able to finally finish our chicken coop. We have had chickens and other wildlife in classrooms being taken care of at Small by students for many years. Last year we had some issues will our natural environmental issues colliding with our permaculture. Natural residents on our campus, red-tailed hawks, were struggling last year with the drought and out chickens were an easy entree. Our coop is now hawk and predator proof.

Now for the nitty gritty. For all Environmental Science electives, you will ALWAYS NEED IN CLASS a WRITING UTENSIL, PENCIL OR PEN ONLY, AGENDA, AND A COMPOSITION NOTEBOOK. There is a $5 lab fee. This lab fee will be used to buy new plants, seeds, growing medium, tools, animals holding tanks and many other things. If your family cannot afford the lab fee please email or call me, so alternative arrangements can be made. Right now all supplies are on sale. Please stock up. Almost all classes at Small use the composition notebook, so why not buy a bushel. Classes will be great this year I look forward to seeing and hearing from everyone. As promised photos will follow from this summer.