+ Animal Adaptations/Lifecycles

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1a; 2.1a,b; 2.2a,b; 3.1a,c; 3.2b; 5.1b; 5.21b-g; 6.1e,f; 7.1c
• Available year-round, on or off site

Learn what different species needs to survive. What do they eat and how do they protect themselves? What is their habitat? What function do their body coverings like fur, scales, and feathers serve? Younger groups usually cover animal babies and animals in autumn. Some past themes for older groups include: insect lifecycles, amphibian lifecycles, ecosystems, and birds of prey.

+ Apple Cidering

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 2.2a; 3.2c; 4.1a; 4.2b; 7.1b Geog S 3
• Available September-November; March-May, on-site

This lesson demonstrates the parts of the cider press including the flywheel, basket, press bag, hopper, tray, and platen. We will discuss the lifecycle of the apple tree and the parts of the fruit. We also include the importance of pollinators in the lifecycle of food plants. We’ll make cider from a variety of apples and then take a brief hike in the woods to discuss how seeds are spread.

+ Geology

• Available year-round, on-site

Students will learn about the processes that shape the three major types of rock and learn to identify the common minerals found in the area. Our on-site quarry offers the opportunity to collect samples of quartz, feldspar, and mica while using basic tools used by geologists.

+ Hibernation

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1a,b; 2.1a; 3.1c; 5.2a,b,d,f
• Available year-round, on-site/off-site

Meet some of our museum animals as we discuss how animals prepare for winter. We will learn the difference between warm-blooded and cold-blooded animals and which are true hibernators.

+ Maple Sugaring

• Available February/March, on-site

Learn how to tap a tree with a hand drill, spile, and bucket while learning about the physiology of trees. We’ll taste fresh sap and visit our Sugar Shed to check out the evaporator and discover just how much sap is needed to produce syrup.

+ Marine Ecology (Rye City School District Only**)

• Sample Core Standards: S#4: 3.1a,c; 5.1b
• Available September-November; April-May, off-site (at school or Oakland Beach)

Meet us at Oakland Beach for a tide-pool program. You have the option to add a seining component in which instructor and teacher/chaperone will catch swimming organisms from the Sound. Alternatively, an in-school program would cover the classification of invertebrates through a slide show, and observation of live specimens and various exoskeletons.

+ Natural History of Rye

• Available year-round, on-site

Rye is filled with a rich cultural, ecological, and geological history. Learn how various people have lived off the land, from American Indians and colonists through present times. We will highlight different land uses from hunting and farming to gardening and recreation. We will also touch on the formation of the physical environment of the park dating back to the last ice age.

+ NatureStation

• Core standards vary depending on the program.
• Available year-round, off-site only (Requires a 40 x 16 ft parking space)

This mobile classroom and exhibit was fabricated to have the feeling of the forest using natural woods, photographs from the Nature Center as the background, and a ceiling that replicates the canopy of the trees on a summer day. The interactive forest, wetland, quarry, and garden components include hands-on activities and lessons designed by our education team. For more information pertaining to NatureStation, click here. Please note that NatureStation programs begin at $300/hour.

+ Our Watershed

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 3.1a; 5.1b; 7.1c
• Available September-November; March-May, on-site

Students will visit the Blind Brook to collect specimens like crayfish and eels. We discuss what a watershed is and how the brook is influenced by Long Island Sound.

+ Plant Cycles/Adaptations

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1b; 1.2a; 2.2a; 3.1b; 3.2b; 4.1a,b,c; 5.2a
• Available year-round, on-site

Students will visit both the garden and the forest to observe and compare stages of plant growth. They will collect various seeds while learning the natural history of the forest plant community. We will also play some games to learn how animals and wind help in seed dispersal.

+ Pond Lifecycles

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 3.1a; 4.1a,f; 5.1b
• Available Late April-May, on-site

A visit to the pond will include both amphibian and insect lifecycles. Each scoop of the net provides a plethora of opportunities to indentify some onf the common aquatic creatures like dragonflies and tadpoles. Younger students will observe the teachers scoops while older children will have the chance to use the nets themselves.

+ Science Review (Fourth Grade Only**)

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1b; 1.2a; 2.2a; 3.1b; 3.2b; 4.1 a,b,c,e,f,g; 5.2a
• Available May, on-site

Connect the concepts from the classroom with the natural world in our fourth grade science review. Students will visit several station to cover a variety of topics and utilize different lab tools. We cover the basics of the water cycle at the Blind Brook while using a hydrometer to take a salinity reading. We review the honeybee lifecycle and demonstrate using balance scales. The garden station discusses the formula for the photosynthesis process and how to graph temperature readings. At the forest station we illustrate animal adaptations using skulls and estimating a fallen tree's age with rulers.

+ Spring/Fall Walk

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1b; 1.2a; 2.2a; 3.1b; 4.1b,d; 4.2a; 5.2a; 6.2a
• Available September-November; March-May, on-site

Learn to identify forest trees by their flowers and leaves. In the fall students will get to admire the beautiful canopy of changing leaves and learn what causes this seasonal color change. In the spring, it's time to discover the newly emerging wildflowers.

+ Tree ID

• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 1.1a,b; 3.1b,c; 4.1a; 5.1b; 5.2b
• Available year-round, on-site

Learn some of the easily identifiable trees you can find in the Nature Center forest and around your neighborhood. We will learn to identify these trees by comparing the leaves and seeds as we hike the forest. Students will also learn about the age of trees and the habitats they prefer to grow in.

+ BIRD IDENTIFICATION

• All Grades
• Sample Core Standards: S #4 - 1.1a; 2.1a,b; 2.2a,b; 3.1a,c; 3.2b; 5.1b; 5.21b-g; 6.1e,f; 7.1c
• Duration: Approximately 60 minutes

There are many different species of birds native to Westchester and southern New York. Students will learn basic natural history about birds and how to identify some of the common species by their plumage and calls.

+ BEACH/TIDE POOLS

• Grades: Kindergarten and 2
• Sample Core Standards: S#4 - 3.1a,c; 5.1b
• Duration: Approximately 30 minutes

Learn from a demonstration of our popular seining program where the instructor discovers what creatures are swimming in the Long Island Sound at Oakland Beach. Students will get an up-close look at hermit crabs and other critters living in tide pools and under rocks.

+ LIFECYCLES

• Grade: 3
• Sample Core Standards: S #4 - 3.1a; 4.1a,f; 5.1b
• Duration: Approximately 30 minutes

Learn about animals through the different stages of their lives from eggs to adults. Species include birds, turtles, pond insects, and frogs. Students will see examples of each classification of animal and insect specimens from the Nature Center’s pond.

+ GEOLOGY

• All Grades
• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 2.1d; 3.1b; 3.2c; 4.1d; 4.2a
• Duration: Approximately 30 minutes Learn about the processes that shape the three major types of rock and learn to identify the common minerals found in the area. Our local quarry offers the opportunity to collect samples of quartz, feldspar, and mica.

+ ANIMAL ADAPTATIONS

• Grades: 2-6
• Sample Core Standards: S #4 - 1.1a; 2.1a,b; 2.2a,b; 3.1a,c; 3.2b; 5.1b; 5.21b-g; 6.1e,f; 7.1c
• Duration: Approximately 60 minutes Students will meet a mammal, reptile, and bird, and learn what each group needs to survive. What do they eat and how do they protect themselves? What is their habitat? What function do their body coverings like fur, scales, and feathers serve? These local animals all have a set of adaptations that keep them alive.

+ PONDING

• Grades: Preschool-Kindergarten
• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 3.1a; 4.1a,f; 5.1b
• Duration: Approximately 20 minutes A visit to our pond introduces both amphibian and insect lifecycles. Each scoop of the net provides a plethora of opportunities to identify some of the common aquatic creatures like dragonflies and tadpoles.

+ PONDING

• Grades: Preschool-Kindergarten
• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 3.1a; 4.1a,f; 5.1b
• Duration: Approximately 20 minutes A visit to our pond introduces both amphibian and insect lifecycles. Each scoop of the net provides a plethora of opportunities to identify some of the common aquatic creatures like dragonflies and tadpoles.

+ APPLE CIDERING

• Grades: Preschool, K – 2nd
• Sample Core Standards: S #4: 2.2a; 3.2c; 4.1a; 4.2b; 7.1b

The lesson demonstrates the parts of the cider press including the flywheel, basket, press bag, hopper, tray, and platen. We discuss the lifecycle of the apple tree and the parts of the fruit. We also include the importance of pollinators in the lifecycle of food plants.