Creative Students Help to Conserve Wildlife
By Maria Grace, Education & Outreach Manager
A student at Unity Charter School shows off his bald eagle sculpture (c) Maria Grace
Recently, I went to Unity Charter School in Morristown to give a presentation to the 3rd and 4th graders about NJ’s endangered wildlife. The students in Julia Kelly’s class raised over $100 for Conserve Wildlife Foundation as part of a unit on endangered species.
These students impressed me with their breadth of knowledge and genuine passion to try and protect NJ’s rare wildlife. Ms. Kelly did a fantastic job using New Jersey wildlife as a focus to teach about the global issue of endangered species. Each student selected an endangered species that lives in NJ (there are 73 currently listed as either endangered or threatened). They did some research about its habits and habitats and wrote a report.
But as a finale to their projects, each student created a sculpture of their animal in its preferred habitat. I was overwhelmed by these sculptures and completely amazed by the students’ attention to detail and their comprehensive knowledge of their chosen animal. They really wowed me with their art creations and I wanted to share it with the masses in the hopes that these students will move more of us to support the work of Conserve Wildlife Foundation.
Tags: endangered species, Environmental education, New Jersey, Unity Charter School