Students study plant diversity on one of ESC`s many nature trails

Related Documents: ESC Program Guide

ABOUT THE CENTER  

The Environmental Studies Center is a natural sciences education facility designed to provide unique learning experiences not typically available in the local school.  Featuring over 500 acres of rich woodlands, the Center affords teachers, students and the general public an opportunity to experience firsthand the natural environment and the interrelationships governing our living world.  Natural resources include pine and bay forests, swamps, freshwater streams, carnivorous plant bogs, and a twenty-acre lake.  Man-made resources include numerous nature and hiking trails, an outdoor amphitheater, covered pavilions, a weather station, live animal exhibits, butterfly garden, native plants garden, and multipurpose instruction building.  Facilities include an auditorium, library, and classroom/laboratory containing live reptile exhibits, a salt-water aquarium, and numerous preserved specimens commonly encountered throughout southern Alabama.

STAFF-LED PROGRAMS (PreK - 12)  

Teachers may choose from the following programs correlated with the Alabama Science Course of Study at each grade level.  Programs involving the STARLAB planetarium are shown italics, while life science topics are shown in regular print.  Students will be introduced to a variety of animals and plants native to Alabama in all programs dealing with wildlife.  All staff-led programs require advanced reservations and may be subject to group size limitations.

ELEMENTARY                                                                     

PreK: 

The Natural Environment - Basic Awareness            

Kindergarten:

Look at Plants and Animals

Where Plants and Animals Live

Looking at the Sky 

Grade 1:

What Are Plants?

What Are Animals?

Changes in the Sky

Grade 2:

Animals Are Living Things

Plants Are Living Things  

Motions in the Sky

Grade 3:

Classifying Animals

Parts of Plants  

Cycles and Patterns in the Sky

Grade 4:

Finding Nemo's Friends (Nov. 29-30, Dec. 1-3 only)

The Role of Plants and Animals in  Ecosystems

Looking at the Universe

Grade 5:

Interactions Among Living Things

Inside the Cell (Jan. 11-13, Jan.18-21, Jan 25-27 Only)

Exploring Space

SECONDARY (Middle and High School)*

Earth & Space

Studying Space (6^th grade)

Sky Quests (High School)

Botany                        

Native Plant History, Taxonomy

and Identification   (Including Pitcher Plant Bog)

Environmental  

Water Quality Testing          

Wetland Habitats

Marine Science            

Marine Life Up Close   (Using ESC Saltwater Aquarium)

Mobile Bay Boat Trip (Marine Biology classes only)

Biology            

Introduction to Microscopy                                  

Zoology                       

Animals of the Mobile Area (Adaptations, Behaviors, and Taxonomy)                                                           

*Programs adjusted to meet grade level objectives.