OMSI is participating in International Public Science Day for the fourth straight year! This year, OMSI is investigating the IPSD2001 theme "Science Works! How Science Benefits Your Community," with third grade students and teachers from the Hockinson Heights Intermediate School in Brush Prairie, WA and city officials from nearby Battle Ground, WA.

Hockinson third grade teachers Betsey Kenworthy and Barbara Tracey led their classes in an investigation of how land is used by people from Pre-Columbian times to the present day--from untouched wilderness to modern cities. Based on curriculum Betsey Kenworthy has developed over more than twelve years, these two Hockinson third grade classes designed and built room-sized models of wilderness areas. Students then collaborated to develop the class models through five more historical stages as they learned about Native American, pioneer, rural and urban land use, and studied connections to ecology, history, technology, culture and civics.

Each student took on an official role for their city--mayor, councilmember, planner, engineer, clerk, and more--and worked with their real-life counterparts from local city government to understand the science, technology and governmental processes necessary to work through difficult choices in planning and developing their cities. Students also worked with senior citizens with first-hand knowledge of local history to help them understand changes in land use and ways of life.

Throughout the school year, students visited OMSI for special hands-on workshops in subjects such as watershed ecology, structural engineering, mapping, and graphing, and brought their finished cities to the museum to lead visitors on tours of their projects on March 21, 2001 for International Public Science Day.

Get all the details about how to create these interdisciplinary projects in your classroom
and learn more about International Public Science Day 2001 at OMSI.