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Welcome!

Thank you for expressing your interest in this citizen science project. The following slides will walk you through the process of taking part in this province wide activity and answer some of the questions that you may have.

The focus for this citizen science project is to:

1. Measure the available greenspace at your school that students can access (ie., where they play at recess or access at lunch).

2. Measure the brownspace at your school that students do not have access to (ie., parking lots).

3. Compare and make critical connections between the two measurements.

4. View and explore school data from around the province and make further observations.

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Goals of this Project

Further to the focus of this project, participating will also assist with:

Providing an introduction for both teachers and students to ArcGIS
Providing provincial connections to school-based data
Providing opportunities for critical discussions and thought around environmental impact

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Curriculum Connections

This project is scalable for students from grades Primary through to 12. It can be completed in English or French. As a result, the connections to the Nova Scotia Curriculum will be varied. Some suggestions to your curriculum are:

Mathematics- Gr P-2: length; Gr 3 perimeter; Gr 4-7: area, perimeter, ratios

Social Studies- Gr 4: Learners will investigate the relationships between humans and the physical environment; Gr 7 & 8 Geography: Learners should ask questions about their own communities

Language Arts- Gr 2 Learners will use writing and other forms of representation including, digital texts, to explore, clarify and reflect on their thoughts feeling and experiences and learnings. Gr 4-6 Learners will demonstrate a variety of ways to select and comprehend from a range of culturally diverse print and digital texts

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What is Citizen Science?

Citizen science is the involvement of non-professional scientists, basically everyday people, in the process of conducting scientific research. In this collaborative approach, individuals assist professional researchers by collecting data, making observations, or even helping to analyze results. This not only expands the reach of the research but also creates a more inclusive and democratic way to advance scientific knowledge. By participating, you can help scientists study things like climate change, wildlife, or even outer space, making a real impact on important issues.

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What do I need to do?

To complete this project, you will need to dedicate approximately 30-60 minutes to access ArcGIS, lead students through some instruction on the focus of the activity and how to measure in ArcGIS, complete the two measurements and facilitate a critical conversation around the data, and finally submit the data to the database.

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Whole class or Individual students?

As the expert in your classroom, you can decide the most appropriate instructional strategy to use. For example, in the younger grades, this might be completed as a whole class activity with the teacher operating the mouse to measure the school playground while instructing the students and asking questions. In the upper grades, it may be completed as an independent work activity following some whole class instruction. Students would then compare their results and the classroom teacher could facilitate the data that would be collected and submitted (ie., a classroom average). For resource or specialist teachers, small groups could work together to complete the measurements and submit this on behalf of the teacher. Slides 8 to 22 guide you through the process.

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