Cooking Lake – Blackfoot

Grade 3

Students will discover the roles that plants, animals, and people have in a forest. They will explore how plants and animals interact by participating in games and activities about food chains, animal senses, and the interconnectedness between plants and animals in a forest. Students will also reflect on the impact that humans have on a forest ecosystem and how humans use forests as a natural resource.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

Earth Systems

• Grade 3 - What visible changes can be identified by examining Earth’s surface?

Living Systems

• Grade 3 - How do plants and animals interact?

Grade 4 

Spend the day considering how plants and animals survive in the forest. Through a variety of hands-on activities, students will discover how different organisms interact with their forest environment by exploring the interconnections of Earth’s systems, using external structures to identify and classify local plants and animals, and exploring the purposes of these structures. Students will also consider the forest as a natural resource and how human interactions can impact a forest.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

Earth Systems  

• Grade 4 - How does Earth sustain life? 

Living Systems

• Grade 4 - In what ways do the structures of organisms support survival?

Grade 6 

Connect with the forest by examining the natural and human factors that shape the forest landscape. Students will explore biotic and abiotic factors of the forest and consider how they interact with each other through a series of hands-on activities where they will utilize a variety of tools to identify plants, measure trees, identify wildlife, measure tree canopy cover, analyze soil, and measure the weather. Students will also consider the natural resources of the forest, explore human uses for local tree species and consider stewardship practices.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

Earth Systems

• Grade 6 - What relationship exist between climate and changes on Earth? 

Living Systems

• Grade 6 - In what ways are ecosystems complex?

Junior High

Uncover the interactions in our forest ecosystems through a variety of hands-on activities and games by exploring ecosystem relationships, forest succession, tree measurements, and soil sampling. Through this exploration of biotic and abiotic factors of the forest, students will consider how these factors interact, and the impacts of human use on the ecosystem.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

• Gr. 7 | Plants for Food and Fibre
• Gr. 7 | Interactions and Ecosystems

Junior High | WILDLIFE PROGRAM 

Consider how wildlife interacts with the landscape and the effects of human impacts on their habitat. Through a series of hands-on activities and games, students will identify quality wildlife habitats, understand population changes, explore simple and complex ecosystem relationships, explore threats and opportunities for species at risk, and utilize our on-site wildlife cameras to consider how species move and interact with the forest.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

• Environment & Outdoor Education
• Gr. 7 | Interactions and Ecosystems
• Gr. 9 | Biological Diversity

Senior High

Complete a comprehensive plot study and explore the opportunities and challenges of a multi-use forest area. Students will explore the biodiversity of the forest by utilizing a variety of tools and techniques to collect data on biotic and abiotic factors. Throughout the day students will map their plot, identify plants, measure trees, identify evidence of wildlife activity, sample soil, measure temperature, measure canopy cover, and consider how these factors impact each other and the impact that humans can have on these factors.

*Note: Activities are subject to change depending on time, weather, and other factors.

General Schedule

The program begins in the staging area with a safety talk and introductions to the day. We will then set out on the forest paths to complete our activities, returning back to the staging area midday for lunch before heading back out to complete the remainder of our activities. Generally our forest walks are about 10-20 minutes each way on unpaved but easy terrain.

Curriculum Connections:

• CTS – Natural Resources – Forestry/Wildlife
• Environment & Outdoor Education
• Biology 20/30 Changes in Living Systems
• Ecosystems and Population Change