LEARNING TOGETHER
by Kaitlin Svabek and Brenna Marsicek Did you know that blue jays can mimic the sounds of other birds, including red-tailed hawks? Or that queens are the only bumblebees that live through the winter? Or that the roots of a prairie plant can be 40 feet deep? Nature has always been an important source of inspiration and learning for humankind, from inventors and scientists to poets and writers. A key part of Madison Audubon’s mission is to get people of all ages outside, engaged, and curious about the amazing world around us because when we care about something, we tend to care for it.
Explore, Enjoy, and Discover Madison Audubon partners with local schools and community centers for 22 | m a d i s o n e s s e n t i a l s
Madison Audubon’s Nature Education
nature-based education programs that connect kids from all backgrounds to the natural world in their own communities. Our educators might be outside with students on a scavenger hunt, dodging imaginary dangers on a bird-migration-themed obstacle course, or tromping through mud to identify bugs and animal tracks. Many of our lesson plans are available to teachers and classrooms for free on our website at madisonaudubon.org/free-lessons. Our education team is constantly coming up with new ideas for games and programs. For older students, our Conservation Academy, done in partnership with Operation Fresh Start, seeks to inspire young folks and help them acquire the skills needed to take part in conservation
work. These career-oriented sessions, supported by generous grants from the Alliant Energy Foundation, the Evjue Foundation, and the Friends of MacKenzie Education Center, might involve local conservation leaders discussing topics as wide-ranging as urban canid tracking or electrofishing. In addition to working with students and young adults, Madison Audubon is involved in creating opportunities for all members of the community to learn and grow. Beyond classes about birding and learning how to identify birds, you can find classes on art and drawing, photography, and crafting collision-prevention curtains for windows. New this fall, we’re offering a class called All About Hummingbirds,
Photograph by Carolyn Byers/Madison Audubon
e sse nt i al nonprofit
Students use binoculars to explore the natural world in one of Madison Audubon’s education programs from 2018.
