Field Entomology for Teachers 650
DATES: August 3-7, 2009
TIME: 8AM - 4PM (M-F) Camping and night collection optional
LOCATION: Pittsfield State Forest (directions on their web page)
INSTRUCTOR: Lisa Provencher, entomologist
COST: $720
Where to meet: The educator's building across from the swimming hole just past the main entrance to the forest.
What to bring to the course: Comfortable clothing and shoes with white socks, rain gear, a notebook for keeping field notes, your lunch and snacks.
What will be provided: field collecting equipment, microscopes, pinning and mounting supplies, maps, and most importantly BUG repellent.
How to prepare for the course: Read the following online articles for discussion during the course.
Values and Perceptions
The First Computer Bug
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Day
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Topic
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Locations
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Activities
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Monday
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What is an insect? And why should we study them?
Lyme Disease overview
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Lodge and field
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Lecture, discussion, field collecting.
Practicum 1
Anatomy of a grasshopper
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Tuesday
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The Insect Orders and Life Cycles
Using an identification key
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Lodge, stream and pond
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Lecture, discussion, aquatic collecting.
Identification.
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Wednesday
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Insects, Ecology and the Environment
Wooley Adelgids
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Lodge and forest
Night Collecting (optional)
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Lecture, discussion, forest collecting.
Practicum 2
Pinning and mounting
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Thursday
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Insects, Genetics, Biodiversity and Evolution
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Lodge, forest and field
Berkshire Museum |
Lecture, discussion, forest collecting.
Pinning and mounting
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Friday
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Insects and Society
Malaria
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Lodge, forest and field
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Lecture, discussion, forest collecting.
Work on final project
Practicum 3
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This 3-credit graduate field entomology course will demonstrate to teachers the accessibility and versatility of insects as models in teaching a wide range of concepts including:
the characteristics of living things, reproduction and heredity, genetics, structure and function of cells, evolution and biodiversity, adaptations, energy cycles, ecology and environmental science
Registration Information: BIOE 650-01
Registration Form
INTENDED FOR: Middle/high school science teachers. Berkshire County and beyond
teachers are welcome - the course content can be applied to all levels of biology,
ecology and environmental science curriculum.
The format of the course will be 45 hours of field studies, discussions, presentations, practicums, hands-on experiences, dissections and mounting. Participants will be assigned readings and writings prior to course and will be required to spend additional hours to complete projects outside of the field course time that demonstrate their learning.
Sponsoring Organizations: MCLA, Berkshire STEM Pipeline,
Mass. State Forests
For more information about the course contact STEM
Coordinator Lisa Provencher at MCLA, at 413.662.5525 or
<lisa.provencher@mcla.edu>
