Middle School recently went on a walking museum tour. Their first stop was a personalized tour of the Karl Limper Geology Museum at Miami University where students got to hold a recently curated moon meteorite from the pocket of Director Dr. Kendall Hauer. We know that the moon’s gravitational pull creates tides on Earth, causing ocean water levels to rise and fall. The moon also influences Earth’s rotation and helps stabilize our planet’s axis. Moon meteorites survive the journey in space and make it to the Earth’s surface. Our students gained local geological knowledge and even scientific terms with emphasis on root words, prefixes and suffixes.
Their second stop was the Hefner Natural History Museum. Students participated in a new interactive taxidermy display of ungulates with four-legged animals on display true to their approximate height, students discussed the characteristics of ungulate species and offered verbal feedback to museum staff on its affective interpretation and the overall learning experience. Steven Sullivan offered a mini-lecture on scientific methods as well as various perspectives on science outcomes and the impact on a hypothesis, and instances of revisiting it. Museum staff also offered suggestions on student in-service or citizen science initiatives or projects that benefit our community and wildlife such as the Lights Out Program. Communities advocate for turning off non-essential artificial lights at night to prevent disorientation, collision, and disruption of natural behaviors. Key actions include turning off lights at specific times such as during migration, using motion sensors, dimming or shielding outdoor lights, closing curtains, and opting for warmer-colored bulbs.
