This is Angela and it was a great ending day to the creek week session 2. The students met up close to the aquarium so they could walk closer to the jointing of the la river and the Pacific ocean. We took a short walk towards the creek, saw the sewage treatment plants that leads to the ocean, and then proceeded over to the aquarium.
They had approximately two hours to wander about in the aquarium seeing the different creatures and exhibits. After feeding them lunch from the aquarium, they were led into the classroom, where they learned about the influence of plastic from guest speaker from Heal the Bay and the Algalita marine Research Foundation, Dave Weeshoff. In front of the aquarium while we were waiting, the students even witnessed real life examples of entanglement as a small bird was caught by a fishing pole by it's neck and was choking to death as the aquarium staff members were trying to save it.
After the guest lecture, I shortly lectured on the elements required in creating a poster. The students worked in their respective teams and after finishing their posters, presented their topic and project to everyone else. Heal the bay then had them fill out a questionnaire on their overall experience to give feedback and support for the program.
Thanks so much for the end of the program. I think the students all had a great time and I will arrange dates for them to meet up together to actually pursue their projects sometime next week.
Best,
Angela Oh
Friday, July 22, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Creek Week Session 2-Day 3, July, 20 2011
Dear PAVA and students,
Hi, this is Angela Oh again after the third day of the 2nd session of creek week.
Today, the students met at Rio de Los Angeles State Park, where they saw much more human influence today than either of the two previous days. They had a brief introduction game, where they had to use team work and communication to put a floating pole down while keeping two of their fingers always touching the pole. After walking down to where the actual creek is, they had time to explore around and see the habitat around the water. There was a visible view of concrete surrounding the entire creek and the students were able to discern the effect of all the concrete and man-made influences in their tests.
They completed the macro-invertebrates and water chemistry tests by themselves and found more tolerant than sensitive bugs and insects in the water. We all walked back up to the park area, had lunch, and played a game of Capture the Flag. The teams were split amongst their groups and they had more team-bonding.
Finally, the students gathered in their groups and I led and presented the advocacy portion of the program. I was able to introduce myself and my experience with Heal the Bay and PAVA and tell them the brief history of the Heal the Bay Creek Education Program. They were very interested in volunteering and going to talk to the Los Angeles City Council meetings. All the groups seem very ambitious and excited to pursue these projects and research papers.
Group 1 wants to research on the filters for all the outfalls in the Los Angeles area and find methods to prevent trash from coming into the creeks in the first place with a type of filter. With this research, they plan on gathering sponsors from Heal the Bay and PAVA and speaking to the LA Council about attaching new filters. This way, they can divert the trash from the Los Angeles county in different ways through a filter system.
Group 2 plans on writing an actual research paper on the physical effects of pollution and human influence amongst the Los Angeles River and creeks and then propose the Los Angeles County to personally host many beach cleanups around the city. This way, advertisement and campaigning can spread throughout the city and much of the community can actively work to cleanup and pay attention to their wasteful and harmful habits. They wish to gather support from the councilmembers and have them support LA sponsored street and beach cleanups.
Group 3 focuses on the plastic use amongst Los Angeles, by writing a research proposal on the effects of plastic on the environment especially the biodiversity and aquatic and land creatures near the coastal areas. By concentrating on the harmful effects of plastic, they may expand to focusing on stopping the use of plastic bags in the Los Angeles County area, possibly with Heal the Bay.
Group 4 wants to create a documentary video on the general idea of pollution and on how they saw the rapid changes coming down from the top of Big Tujunga Creek to the bottom near Long Beach. Their video will also consist of interviews from Heal the Bay staff-members and people who can help and teach them about more environmentalism.
All the groups are extremely dedicated and determined to plan and then pursue these projects and research papers. I hope that PAVA will be in full support of their creative ideas, which are now in the process of being refined and even more focused. For the next two days, they will continue to plan for requirements to fulfill, people they need to talk to, and missions statements to officially discover the purpose of their projects.
Thanks so much.
Best,
Angela
Hi, this is Angela Oh again after the third day of the 2nd session of creek week.
Today, the students met at Rio de Los Angeles State Park, where they saw much more human influence today than either of the two previous days. They had a brief introduction game, where they had to use team work and communication to put a floating pole down while keeping two of their fingers always touching the pole. After walking down to where the actual creek is, they had time to explore around and see the habitat around the water. There was a visible view of concrete surrounding the entire creek and the students were able to discern the effect of all the concrete and man-made influences in their tests.
They completed the macro-invertebrates and water chemistry tests by themselves and found more tolerant than sensitive bugs and insects in the water. We all walked back up to the park area, had lunch, and played a game of Capture the Flag. The teams were split amongst their groups and they had more team-bonding.
Finally, the students gathered in their groups and I led and presented the advocacy portion of the program. I was able to introduce myself and my experience with Heal the Bay and PAVA and tell them the brief history of the Heal the Bay Creek Education Program. They were very interested in volunteering and going to talk to the Los Angeles City Council meetings. All the groups seem very ambitious and excited to pursue these projects and research papers.
Group 1 wants to research on the filters for all the outfalls in the Los Angeles area and find methods to prevent trash from coming into the creeks in the first place with a type of filter. With this research, they plan on gathering sponsors from Heal the Bay and PAVA and speaking to the LA Council about attaching new filters. This way, they can divert the trash from the Los Angeles county in different ways through a filter system.
Group 2 plans on writing an actual research paper on the physical effects of pollution and human influence amongst the Los Angeles River and creeks and then propose the Los Angeles County to personally host many beach cleanups around the city. This way, advertisement and campaigning can spread throughout the city and much of the community can actively work to cleanup and pay attention to their wasteful and harmful habits. They wish to gather support from the councilmembers and have them support LA sponsored street and beach cleanups.
Group 3 focuses on the plastic use amongst Los Angeles, by writing a research proposal on the effects of plastic on the environment especially the biodiversity and aquatic and land creatures near the coastal areas. By concentrating on the harmful effects of plastic, they may expand to focusing on stopping the use of plastic bags in the Los Angeles County area, possibly with Heal the Bay.
Group 4 wants to create a documentary video on the general idea of pollution and on how they saw the rapid changes coming down from the top of Big Tujunga Creek to the bottom near Long Beach. Their video will also consist of interviews from Heal the Bay staff-members and people who can help and teach them about more environmentalism.
All the groups are extremely dedicated and determined to plan and then pursue these projects and research papers. I hope that PAVA will be in full support of their creative ideas, which are now in the process of being refined and even more focused. For the next two days, they will continue to plan for requirements to fulfill, people they need to talk to, and missions statements to officially discover the purpose of their projects.
Thanks so much.
Best,
Angela
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Creek Week Session 2-Day 2, July,19 2011
Dear PAVA,
Hi this is Angela Oh and today was the second day of session 2 of creek week. The students gathered at Hansen dam and played a group knot game, a game where all the students' hands were tangled together and they had to undo their human knot. Then, we led them down to the creek with big yellow boots to wear in the water and they explored for about half an hour. The area and environment were much different here down lower along the big tujunga creek compared to the location we were at yesterday.
The students then divided up in groups again completing both the water chemistry and the macro-invertabrate assessments with the guidance of two heal the bay staff-members, taira and amber.
After lunch, they went on a scavenger hunt exploring and collecting different items that affect and cause pollution. They returned with many dirty items wasted by humans including wine bottles, plastics, and even boxers. We discussed how these impairments may affect the aquatic creatures of the riparian ecosystem. Afterwards, I briefly lectured about entanglement and how animals often get caught up in the plastic we throw away and how harmful this is to their lives.
As a short activity, they used rubber bands to see how much of their daily lives may be impaired just by having their pinkies and their thumbs tied together. Using the trash they picked up during the scavenger hunt, the students then played a mine game. Each team lined up with one blind-fold and the blind-folded team member had to travel across the mine( a square of all their trash scattered around, their trash items being bombs). This helped them develop strong communication within their team and every time someone would step on a bomb ( trash), they would be splashed by a water sponge. By showing them how difficult it may be to live as animals surrounded by all this trash, this game was fun an successful.
As a wrap up, the students sat in a circle discussing what they enjoyed about their day and how different it was from their experience at the big tujunga creek yesterday. To end the day, Saira, the volunteer coordinator and organizer from heal the bay, talked about the various ways the students can volunteer including becoming a beach captains and ambassador for festivals and events.
Overall, I think the students enjoy the program very much so far.
Best,
Angela Oh
Hi this is Angela Oh and today was the second day of session 2 of creek week. The students gathered at Hansen dam and played a group knot game, a game where all the students' hands were tangled together and they had to undo their human knot. Then, we led them down to the creek with big yellow boots to wear in the water and they explored for about half an hour. The area and environment were much different here down lower along the big tujunga creek compared to the location we were at yesterday.
The students then divided up in groups again completing both the water chemistry and the macro-invertabrate assessments with the guidance of two heal the bay staff-members, taira and amber.
After lunch, they went on a scavenger hunt exploring and collecting different items that affect and cause pollution. They returned with many dirty items wasted by humans including wine bottles, plastics, and even boxers. We discussed how these impairments may affect the aquatic creatures of the riparian ecosystem. Afterwards, I briefly lectured about entanglement and how animals often get caught up in the plastic we throw away and how harmful this is to their lives.
As a short activity, they used rubber bands to see how much of their daily lives may be impaired just by having their pinkies and their thumbs tied together. Using the trash they picked up during the scavenger hunt, the students then played a mine game. Each team lined up with one blind-fold and the blind-folded team member had to travel across the mine( a square of all their trash scattered around, their trash items being bombs). This helped them develop strong communication within their team and every time someone would step on a bomb ( trash), they would be splashed by a water sponge. By showing them how difficult it may be to live as animals surrounded by all this trash, this game was fun an successful.
As a wrap up, the students sat in a circle discussing what they enjoyed about their day and how different it was from their experience at the big tujunga creek yesterday. To end the day, Saira, the volunteer coordinator and organizer from heal the bay, talked about the various ways the students can volunteer including becoming a beach captains and ambassador for festivals and events.
Overall, I think the students enjoy the program very much so far.
Best,
Angela Oh
Monday, July 18, 2011
Creek Week Session 2-Day 1, July, 18 2011
Today was the first day of the 2nd session for the creek week. 23 members showed up. Three of the registered students were unable to come.
Administrative offices were done ( waivers and payments collected).
Edward Murphy again did a short introduction and handed out notebook for the students to use as journals. The students and staff members played a short ice breaker activity, with which they were able to learn each others' names and discuss the different aspects they liked about the environment. Shortly after, they were given time to explore around Big Tujunga Creek, taking notes down on what they saw and how they felt about the creek. They had reflecction time to write down their thoughts in their journals.
The students were then divided into groups of four. Two of the groups started with the water chemistry assessments, while the other two worked on identifying and document macro-invertebrates (bugs, insects, frogs, fish, etc). They then switched and all four teams finished both assessments.
After lunch, they made color coded tie dye shorts that they will wear throughout the week. Each group was given a color to dye their shirts with. To teach the students what a watershed is, we demonstrated the way water moved through a game called Over/Under. The students moved water through one sponge moving it over and then under each student, until all the water was collected at the back of the line.
They had a short de-brief and worked on their data workbooks. They discussed what they saw throughout the day and left with popsicles!
Today was a good day. Overall, I think the students were more excited this time than the last and they seem to participate in the assessments and games extremely well. We hope for the best.
Angela
Administrative offices were done ( waivers and payments collected).
Edward Murphy again did a short introduction and handed out notebook for the students to use as journals. The students and staff members played a short ice breaker activity, with which they were able to learn each others' names and discuss the different aspects they liked about the environment. Shortly after, they were given time to explore around Big Tujunga Creek, taking notes down on what they saw and how they felt about the creek. They had reflecction time to write down their thoughts in their journals.
The students were then divided into groups of four. Two of the groups started with the water chemistry assessments, while the other two worked on identifying and document macro-invertebrates (bugs, insects, frogs, fish, etc). They then switched and all four teams finished both assessments.
After lunch, they made color coded tie dye shorts that they will wear throughout the week. Each group was given a color to dye their shirts with. To teach the students what a watershed is, we demonstrated the way water moved through a game called Over/Under. The students moved water through one sponge moving it over and then under each student, until all the water was collected at the back of the line.
They had a short de-brief and worked on their data workbooks. They discussed what they saw throughout the day and left with popsicles!
Today was a good day. Overall, I think the students were more excited this time than the last and they seem to participate in the assessments and games extremely well. We hope for the best.
Angela
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Advocacy Project/Research Training
Heal the Bay – Creek Week
Advocacy Project/ Research Training
Led by Angela Oh
PROJECTS
1. Documentary video on effect of pollution on creeks and what we can do about it.
2. Host a recycling competition between divisions/districts of PAVA
3. Hosting a PAVA cleanup
Topics – Research with Poster Board
1. Creatures/Animals/Insects in the different creeks and how they are affected by the pollution
2. Amount of trash based on environment/setting
3. Determine the difference between water quality of the five creeks
Day 3: Determining the Project, Idea, Issue
· Abstract: After students are divided into separate teams, students will listen to the different topics and projects that they can choose. From a total of three projects and three research proposals, students will determine how they can actively work on helping the environment using their projects. Students will learn how to plan their projects with biological, chemical, and physical methods of discovering a problem and finding a solution. They will define their project/topic and discern what they expect to accomplish. After breaking down the time and schedules, students will begin planning.
· Learning Objectives:
o Decide on a project/research subject, and defining a solution to the problem
o Decide the specific elements of the project/research
o Define goals
· Lesson Plan Schedule
o 15 minutes: Lesson plan lecture
o 40 minutes: students working
o 25 minutes: presenting to the other students
· Lesson Plan Notes
o - discuss any plans and concerns
o -what does each team what to focus on
o - present the different projects and topics that each team wants to pursue
o - project ideas, what do you want to do about it
o -how to change the environment and make a difference
o -working actively instead of just listening passively
o - planning with a good clear result, good regular communication
o - set up a list of requirements and steps to fulfill ( specifically)
o - discover the problem of the topic and what the solution of the problem is trying to determine or achieve
o - team game dodgeball developing team spirit, working together
o -what types of household habits can you change (i.e. using reusable bags, water bottles)
o - list of goals, mission statement, detailed overall goal, short statement
o - definition of success
o - brainstorming session
Day 4: Defining needed Materials and Resources
· Abstract: Students will determine a list of requirements and steps to complete their project. They will find out what resources to help facilitate their project and a calendar with a checklist on what they need to accomplish. Each team will determine the people they need to talk to and learn how to network with the staff at Heal the Bay for help and information. In the end, each team will nominate a team leader, who will assign what each team member will be doing.
· Learning Objectives:
o What resources are needed
o People they need to talk to (research scientists, speakers, community leaders…)
o Roles, how are you going to do this
· Lesson Plan Schedule
o 15 minutes: Lesson plan lecture
o 40 minutes: students working
o 20 minutes: presenting to the other students
· Lesson Plan Notes
o - how can we use resources to our benefit of the project
o - project manager who is responsible for ensuring that project is finished on time, with good quality
o - assemble project team with needed equipment
o - calendar with dates throughout the project that need to be met
o -time frame
o - references
o - problem-solving, who’s going to do what job
o -creating a checklist
o Planning out, getting started
o - timeline
o - what is the task
o - what is the cause and effect that is trying to be achieved
o - evaluate how much of the planning is finished
o - what are we trying to achieve in the bigger picture
Day 5: Planning Out, getting started
· Abstract: Students will have a plan with organized layouts of a cause and effect for their project/research paper. They will look at the bigger picture of their project and how this program has affected and or helped understand their project. They will also see how what they are doing is going to change the environment and in what ways. In order to make a poster, students will determine the different elements including a
o topic
o mission statement with goals
o solution
o methods
o hypothesis of data
o predicted results of fulfilling their project/research paper
o pictures
· Learning Objectives
o make a poster on their topic
o creating a timeline and being prepared to start
o completing a presentation
§ all members must present and introduce themselves to the rest of the program participants
· Lesson Plan Schedule
o 15: Lesson plant lecture
o 30: Students Working
o 15: Group Presentation
· Lesson Plan Notes
o
Heal the Bay Research Program Course 1, Day 5
Hi this is Angela oh again reporting on the last and final day of the first session of the heal the bay PAva creek program. Today the students arrived closer to the junction between the la river and the ocean, seeing the sewage treatment plants and even the physical difference in water quality that is streaming right onto the ocean.
We then walked shortly to the aquarium of the pacific and was guided by a staff member from the aquarium to a private classroom. The students discussed the chemistry behind dissolved oxygen in the water, were divided into groups, and went outside to the shore to evaluate the amount of dissolved oxygen in various depths of the water. The students then determined whether there was more oxygen in deeper or in more shallow waters.
Heal the bay then provided an awesome lunch for the students including sandwiches, cookies, and salads. After the lunch, the students were given free time to roam around the aquarium. We had a speaker, Holly Grey, from an organization called Algalita. She talked about the plastics in the stomachs if albatrosses.
Afterwards, they divided up into their individual teams and discussed their projects. They discussed and analyzed how much work they needed to do and finish after actually starting. With a checklist of requirements and assignments of who is going to have what job to fulfill, they organized their projects and are hopefully ready to actually pursue them following this program.
I want to thank PAVA so much for supporting me and heal the bay until the completion of our project. I really hope that the students enjoyed the program as much as I did. And I really appreciate all heal the bay has done for the pava students, helping them understand how the environment is affected chemically, biologically, and physically by pollution and trash. I hope these active and hands-on projects have and will continue to help them develop more advocacy for helping better the environment.
Thanks again!
Sincerely,
Angela oh
We then walked shortly to the aquarium of the pacific and was guided by a staff member from the aquarium to a private classroom. The students discussed the chemistry behind dissolved oxygen in the water, were divided into groups, and went outside to the shore to evaluate the amount of dissolved oxygen in various depths of the water. The students then determined whether there was more oxygen in deeper or in more shallow waters.
Heal the bay then provided an awesome lunch for the students including sandwiches, cookies, and salads. After the lunch, the students were given free time to roam around the aquarium. We had a speaker, Holly Grey, from an organization called Algalita. She talked about the plastics in the stomachs if albatrosses.
Afterwards, they divided up into their individual teams and discussed their projects. They discussed and analyzed how much work they needed to do and finish after actually starting. With a checklist of requirements and assignments of who is going to have what job to fulfill, they organized their projects and are hopefully ready to actually pursue them following this program.
I want to thank PAVA so much for supporting me and heal the bay until the completion of our project. I really hope that the students enjoyed the program as much as I did. And I really appreciate all heal the bay has done for the pava students, helping them understand how the environment is affected chemically, biologically, and physically by pollution and trash. I hope these active and hands-on projects have and will continue to help them develop more advocacy for helping better the environment.
Thanks again!
Sincerely,
Angela oh
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