Two Country School Students Get Experiments Published in BirdSleuth Investigator Magazine
The scientific experiments of Country School students, Jack T. and Whitney R., currently in the seventh grade, have been selected for publication in the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology’s annual magazine, Birdsleuth Investigator.
Their experiments, entitled: “Which seed attracts more birds?” and “Does the time of day affect when birds come to the feeder?” were undertaken over a month-long period in 2013 and submitted with assistance from sixth grade teachers, Carol Etzold and Sanjiv Maliakal.
Maliakal and Etzold, have been encouraging their middle school students to increase their observational skills, collect data and notice details. “I want them to pay close attention to the sights and sounds of their surroundings,” said Maliakal. “I also want them to be outdoors and connect with nature.” The curriculum they have devised uses the Country School’s 75-acre campus as an extension of the classroom, and is an example of the school’s commitment to experiential learning and natural exploration. “Of all the things we do in science, this is the most authentic,” said Maliakal. “At every step, the students are real scientists, right until the point of publishing their findings in a scientific journal.”
To read the published experiments please go to http://www.birdsleuth.org/student-publication.
New Canaan Country School
New Canaan Country School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin and are afforded all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, or disability in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid policies or any other school-administered programs.
