Get Outside!

Wetland Ecology

Class Description:

After establishing a common vocabulary in the study of wetlands, students will gather data regarding the vegetation, hydrology, and soil composition of several wetland types including swamps, marshes, and peatlands. After returning from the discovery hike, students will analyze their data.

Outcomes

Upon completion of the Wetlands Ecology class students will be able to:

  • Define "wetland" and distinguish between several types of Minnesota wetlands.
  • Summarize the formation and distribution of wetlands in MN and the US.
  • Explain three values inherent in natural, undisturbed wetlands.
  • Recommend actions to preserve healthy wetland environments.

Minnesota Graduation Standards

Wolf Ridge has aligned the Center's entire curriculum to Minnesota Department of Education Academic Standards. As the primary student audience at Wolf Ridge is from 4th-12th grade, the matrices address these grade levels. Teachers may request that their students focus upon a specific benchmark while attending Wolf Ridge. The Wolf Ridge Curriculum Standards Matrix addresses benchmarks in

  • Science
  • Math
  • History and Social Science
  • Language Arts
  • Arts

Wolf Ridge Curriculum Concepts

  • All living and non-living components of an environment interact with one another to form an ecosystem.
  • Humans have a great ability to alter natural systems, and a responsibility to consider the effects of our actions.
  • Everything in nature has intrinsic value which may be beyond our understanding.
  • Stewardship of the earth benefits humans as well as the environment.
  • See entire Wolf Ridge Curriculum Framework

 

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Time
3 hours total
2 hours outdoors

Audience
4th grade - adult

Activity level
strenuous

Travel
1 1/4mile

Total uphill travel
320 feet

150 px wide please