LAPS Field Trips and Classroom Visits

Farmers Market Field Trips or Class Visits (Kindergarten)

Kindergarden classes visit the Market for food, learning and fun! Our popular Farmers Market field trips are now available as a field trip or classroom visit. We'll teach three interactive, hands-on centers at the market or in your classroom. Your students will:

• identify major structures of plants
• observe and describe similarities and differences in the appearance and behaviors of edible plants
• describe how personal food choices relate to health
• list positive health choices and activities that promote health and help prevent diseases
• recognize health-promoting foods
• identify ways to improve or maintain personal health in the areas related to nutrition

One teacher said, "I think it opened up the door to better understanding that many foods they eat come from somewhere else, not a box or a freezer, etc." The best thing about the class visit? "The presenters!"

Class visits last approximately one hour; field trips, in season, are from 9-11:00 on Thursday mornings in September and October.

Call 662-0460 or email PEEC to schedule.

Pajarito Plateau Field Science
(K-6)

The Pajarito Plateau Field Science Curriculum (PPFS) is a hands-on, field science curriculum for grades K-6 that gets Los Alamos Public Schools students outside six times per year.

For more information, see Pajarito Plateau Field Science.

Multi-disciplinary Vermiculture Classroom Kits
(K-6)

Michele Altherr, Mountain GATE teacher and one of the founders of PEEC, has developed cross-curricular vermiculture kits, customized for each grade level K-6. These kits are available for check-out from PEEC, and contain all the supplies and materials you will need.

For more information, see vermiculture kits.

1st Grade Life Science Discovery

Our popular spring field trips will start scheduling in April.

We will rotate through five hands on activities at the learning stations at PEEC, and take a guided iSpy hike on the nature trail! Students will:

• observe the amphibians and reptiles and distinguish between the two
• learn that there were once shallow seas in New Mexico
• visit and play with "nature's recyclers"
• understand that different birds have different beaks for various jobs
• identify living and nonliving things in nature

One teacher said, "This is one of our favorite field trips- we look forward to it every year!"

Second Grade Geology Field Trips

Join us for an exciting geology field trip at our center. Through hands-on classroom activities and a guided geology hike, students will learn about different kinds of rocks and minerals and the processes of weathering and erosion. Students will:

• identify common rocks and minerals
• understand how large rocks break down into smaller ones
• see that different kinds of soil come from different kinds of rocks
• learn about local rock formations
• observe weathering and erosion in action in the field

Third Grade Plant and Soil Field Trips

Our popular spring field trips wil start scheduling in April.

Spring is here! It is the perfect time for budding botanists to have the opportunity to study plant structures and soil composition through hands on activities and a guided hike at PEEC. Your students will:

• learn why soil is important to our lives
• identify different materials in soil
• Collect and analyze data on the different properties of soil
• observe and record native plant life

One teacher said, "It was a beautiful way to experience nature and science first-hand."

Energy and Water Trunks (Grades 3-5)

Energy and Water trunks available for check-out ~OR~ have a PEEC teacher give the lessons in your classroom. In the Energy Lessons, students will learn to:

• Define energy, identify its different forms, and know where it comes from
• Identify different uses of energy
• Distinguish between renewable and non-renewable energy sources
• Understand the greenhouse effect and carbon emissions
• Understand energy conservation and ways to conserve energy
• Determine how to help the environment through energy-conscious actions

In the Water Lessons, students will:

• Discuss water and its different forms
• Understand how energy is carried through water
• Understand how water is used for different energy sources
• Understand how energy use impacts water supplies of living systems
• Understand the impact of climate change on water and weather
• Understand where Los Alamos gets its water from and community decisions regarding water use
• Understand water conservation and ways to conserve water
• Determine how they can help conserve water at home and at school

Each lesson lasts about 1 hour. This is a joint project with the Los Alamos County Department of Public Utilities.

A LAPS Fourth Grade teacher said, "It was a great introduction/supplement to the science standards. She was very good with the kids, kept their attention, and had some good hands-on activities and demonstrations."

Call 662-0460 or email PEEC to schedule.

Ecology Explorations! (Grade 5)

Experts from the Sandia Mountain Natural History Center will lead kids on an ecology hike on the trail closest to your school. In the field, students will learn to:

• Identify the components of habitats and ecosystems (producers, consumers, decomposers, predators)
• Understand how food webs depict relationships between different organisms
• Know that changes in the environment can have different effects on different organisms (e.g., some organisms move, some survive, some reproduce, some die)
• Describe how human activity impacts the environment
• Know that plants and animals have life cycles that include birth, growth and development, reproduction and death, and that these cycles differ for different organisms

Mountain teachers say, "I highly recommend these people, as they were well prepared, very knowledgeable, and professional."

Call 662-0460 or email soon for the best choice of dates.

Great Backyard Bird Count (Grade 6)

Join people from around the country in the Great Backyard Bird Count. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to collect, record, and analyze real field data. The GBBC has been collecting data on birds in Los Alamos and White Rock for over 10 years. A PEEC educator will help students to:

• Learn to identify local birds;
• Understand how organisms interact with their physical environments to meet their needs;
• Describe how weather affects the function of living systems;
• Describe how organisms have adapted to various environmental conditions;
• Construct appropriate graphs from data and develop qualitative and quantitative statements about the relationships between variables being investigated;
• Understand that scientific investigations use common processes that include the collection of relevant data and observations, accurate measurements;
• Use probabilities, patterns and relationships to explain data and observations.

Park Flight (Grade 6)

Our local Park Flight Migratory Bird Program takes place at Bandelier National Monument. PEEC has funding for sixth-grade classes from area schools to take field trips in September to Bandelier to learn about research on migratory birds. For more information, see Park Flight.