LEARN ABOUT TEXAS’ LAND, WATER & WILDLIFE
Invite a conservation educator to your classroom for grade-specific, in-person presentations designed for K-8 students! Presentations are 30-60 minutes long and available year-round. All programs include interactive wildlife-based lessons, activities, and demonstrations that are aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) state standards and can be customized to correlate with a specific thematic unit.
Six different programs are available to bring wildlife and natural resources conservation into the classroom. Reservations are handled on a first-come, first-served basis – request one now!
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Skins & Skulls is a prepared discussion of the identification and specialized adaptations of native Texas wildlife using animal skulls and skins. Students will investigate the skulls of these animals to identify their ‘mystery mammal,’ all while learning about their animal’s habitat, food sources, and adaptations for survival. The concept and importance of land stewardship, including its wildlife, is introduced and reinforced throughout the presentation.
K: 5C-G, 11, 12B, 13B | 1: 5C-G, 11C, 12A-C, 13A | 2: 5C-G, 11A-B, 12A-B | 3: 5C-G, 11B, 12B-C, 13A | 4: 5C-G, 11A-B, 12B | 5: C-G, 11, 12A-C, 13A | 6: 5C-G, 11B, 12A-B | 7: 5C- G | 8: C-G, 12C
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Where Is Our Water? is an interactive program that covers a variety of water topics, from the water cycle to sources and usage of water to pollution and infiltration of groundwater into our aquifers. Hands-on activities and demonstrations will allow students to investigate and understand the human impact on water and how it affects our land and wildlife. The concept and importance of land and water stewardship is introduced and reinforced throughout the presentation. The main message is conservation!
K: 5C-D & F-G, 6, 9B, 11, 12B | 1: 5C-D & F-G, 6A-B, 10B-C, 11A-C, 12A | 2: 5C-D & F-G, 6A, 10A, 11-B, 12A | 3: 5C-D & 5F-G, 6B-C, 11A-B, 11C, 12C | 4: 5C-D & F-G, 6A, 10A, 11A-B | 5: 5C-D & F-G, 6A, 10A, 11A, 12A-12C | 6: 5D & F-G, 11B, 12A | 7: 5-D & F-G, 11A-B | 8: 5D & F-G, 8.12C
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Birds of a Feather is an overview of bird adaptations. By investigating skulls and feet of different species of bird, students will discover what makes a bird a bird and how different birds use their adaptations to survive in their environments. Activities may include exploring bird anatomy, identifying a bird based on its skull and foot, experimenting with different bird beaks and how a bird might use a specific beak to get its food, measuring wingspan, and listening to bird vocalizations. The concept and importance of land stewardship, including native Texas birds, is introduced and reinforced throughout the presentation.
K: 5C-D & F-G, 11, 12B, 13B & D | 1: 5C-D & F-G, 11B-C, 13A-C | 2: C-D & F-G, 11A-B, 13B | 3: C-D & F-G, 11B-C, 13A-B | 4: 5C-D & F-G, 11A-B, 13B | 5: 5C-D
& F-G, 11, 12A & C, 13A-B | 6: 5C-D, F-G, 12A-B | 7: C-D & F-G | 8: 5C-D & F-G, 12C
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Investigating Life Cycles is an inquiry-based program that allows students to investigate and understand each stage of various life cycles using biofacts, kinesthetic activities, and trivia games, for a better understanding of the cycle as a whole. Students will learn the characteristics that allow a plant or animal to grow into a mature adult and how each stage affects its habitat and other plant and animal populations.
K: 5D & F-G, 11, 12A-B, 13A & C-D | 1: 5D & F-G, 11A-C, 12A, 13A-C | 2: 5D & F-G, 11A-B, 12A-C, 13A-B & D | 3: 5D & F-G, 11B-C, 13A-B | 4: 5D & F-G, 11A-B, 13A | 5: 5D & F-G, 11, 12A & C, 13A
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Stewarding Soil is a series of hands-on activities that allows students to dig in and investigate! Students will learn how soil is formed; the characteristics of sand, silt, and clay; how soil health affects living and nonliving things; and what products come from soil. Throughout the program, students will gain a better understanding of why soil is so important to wildlife and people and how they can be stewards of this natural resource. The concept and importance of land stewardship, including soils, is introduced and reinforced throughout the presentation.
K: 5C-G, 6, 11, 12A-B | 1: 5C-G, 6A, 10A, 11 & C, 12A | 2: 5C-G, 6A, 11A-B, 12A | 3: 5C-D & F-G, 6B, 10-B, 11A-C | 4: 5C-D & F-G, 6A, 11A-B | 5: C-D & F-G, 6A-B, 11, 12A-C | 6: 5C-D & F-G, 6B, 11B, 12A | 7: 5C-D & F-G | 8: C-D & F-G, 6A, 12C
WILDLIFE BY DESIGN
Outdoor Scavenger Hunt is a facilitated outside experience that encompasses the ecosystem located within your schoolyard. Students will explore and investigate the physical characteristics of the schoolyard environment, as they discover evidence of interdependence between organisms to connect interactions that occur between living things (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) things, including the flow of energy within food chains/webs.
4: 5C-G, 11A-B, 12B | 5: 5C-G, 11, 12A-C, 13A | 6: 5C-G, 11B, 12A-B | 7: 5C-G, 12A | 8: 5C-G, 12A & C
MEET THE STAFF
The role of our conservation educators is to collaborate with local teachers and students through Wildlife by Design classroom presentations. Currently, 10 conservation educators serve 75 counties across 5 regions of Texas.
JEANETTE REAMES
Fort Bend, Montgomery, Waller, Harris ISDs (Aldine, Alief, Cypress-Fairbanks, Humble, Katy, Klein, Spring, Spring Branch, and Tomball)
DENISE CORRELL
Brazoria, Chambers, Galveston, Liberty, Harris ISDs
(Channelview, Crosby, Deer Park, Galena Park, Goose Creek, Houston, Huffman, La Porte, Pasadena, and Sheldon)
CHRISTINE FOLEY
Concho Valley: Coke, Concho, Crockett, Irion, Kimble, Menard, Runnels, Schleicher, Sterling, Sutton, Tom Green
LISA ALLEN
Permian Basin: Andrews, Brewster, Crane, Culberson, Ector, Glasscock, Howard, Jeff Davis, Loving, Martin, Midland, Pecos, Presidio, Reagan, Reeves, Terrell, Upton, Ward, Winkler
In Partnership with East Foundation
MASI MEJIA
Brooks, Dimmit, Duval, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Kleberg, La Salle, Webb, Zapata
ELISA VELADOR
Cameron, Hidalgo, Kenedy, Starr, Willacy
BRING WILDLIFE TO YOUR CLASSROOM
All Texas schools and organizations with the desire to educate the youth of Texas that meet the following requirements can request in-person Wildlife by Design classroom presentations.
* 1-Class Maximum for Outdoor Scavenger Hunt
HELP KEEP THIS PROGRAM FREE
Thank you for utilizing Wildlife By Design! Please take a moment to provide feedback as we strive to educate Texans about land stewardship and conservation and contact us with photos of your students using the Discovery Trunks that we can publish.
