Raincoast Field School
“The goal of the Raincoast Field School is to increase outdoor learning opportunities for students in our local public schools.”
Raincoast Field School is an outdoor education program designed to meet BC curricular outcomes while providing hands-on learning opportunities for students in our local public schools. It is a collaborative program developed by the Raincoast Education Society (RES) and the teachers at the Tofino and Ucluelet elementary schools.
Field trips and activities are led by a qualified full-time instructor with extensive experience as a science educator, and encompass multiple aspects of curricular outcomes including science, numeracy and literacy. The program is constantly evolving, with lessons being built or recycled to best fit with the unique themes of each class as determined by the teacher.
Making Connections
Raincoast Field School is designed to complement classroom lessons taught by each class’s teacher. The program provides education about the environment in a natural setting and incorporates physical education while reviewing mathematics, English language, arts and social studies concepts that students have learned in class.
Ultimately, the material covered in each class is based on specific requests from the teacher which the Field School instructor then incorporates into a unique activity or lesson plan.
Progress
Full programming is provided to the Wickaninnish Community School in Tofino (since 2014) and the Ucluelet Elementary School (since 2018) through Raincoast Field School. Each and every student from K to grade 7 gets to participate in at least one field trip per month during the school year – that’s over 200 Raincoast Field School trips delivered per year!
Follow along
Raincoast Field School programs are currently being run in Tofino and Ucluelet elementary schools (K-7). Follow along with our programs below.
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In our current arc with Ms. Thompson`s class, we are looking at ecosystems and human impacts. In this lesson we explore the features and types of ecosystems. 🌎
Starting off with a brainstorm we found that ecosystems have many living and nonliving interconnected parts.🕸 Afterwards, we matched a few animals with their ecosystems and habitats. 🦌 After uncovering some similarities and differences in various ecosystems, we explored a common feature of each - predators and prey. 🐺
Out on the field, we played a few rounds of predator-prey tag, we will be adding more details and complexities to this game as the arc continues!
Field School Topic: Ecosystems
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Continuing our studies of energy, Ms. Comtois’ class reviewed several types of energy. ⚡️
After gathering our ideas about the forms of energy in our daily lives and exploring plenty of examples, we were prepped for an energy matching game. 🌊
Later, we took a walk around town to play energy BINGO. 🚗 Finding real-life energy at work in our town, we located wave and sound energy, chemical energy, and `using our minds` we could trace the power lines to their hydroelectric origins! 🧪 Our lesson came to a close with a big game of spring tag to warm us back up on the icy day.🧊
Field School Topic: Forms of Energy
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Taking a closer look at life cycles, we can find two broad styles—metamorphic and non-metamorphic. Butterflies are a common example of the metamorphic style, where they go through a whole-body reconstruction during their pupal stage. 🦋 Humans, on the other hand, look pretty much the same throughout their life cycles. 🧍
Ms. Hirst`s class took a walk along the Tonquin Connector to discuss these two lifestyles. We connected our ideas to various organisms, including many insects. 🐜 To play with these ideas, we learned the game Go Bug!—much like Go Fish but collecting complete life cycles for as many insects as they could! 🪲
Field School Topic: Metamorphic vs Non-Metamorphic Lifecycles
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Winter is a time of hardship for many animals. ❄️ But each takes on the challenge of winter in different ways through their unique adaptations.
Ms. Bruhwiler’s kindergarteners explored the idea of adaptations down at 1st Street Dock. 🌊 We played a few games to uncover the utility of sight—seeing it as an adaptation. 👀
Later, we took a look at a common ocean adaptation—blubber! Using our ‘blubber glove,’ students protected one hand from the icy waters, while their other was left exposed to the elements. 🥶
A visceral experience of the value of good adaptations! Next time, we will take a closer look at winter adaptations. 🐋
Field School Topic: Adaptations
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Surely you`ve heard of Newton`s laws, but what about Newton’s games?
Countless games involve motion of all sorts; with a focused eye, we can tease out the laws of motion from their play. 🏀
Mr. Redican’s class explored the first law: inertia through a few rounds of the classic game marbles. Next up, a game of ball vs. ball related mass and acceleration to expose momentum and the second law. 🎳
Lastly, we head outside to the principle of action and reaction—the 3rd law—through a good rainy round of tug of war! 🪢
Field School Lesson: Newton’s (Laws) Games
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Ms. Aujla’s Grade 5s were introduced to our new project. Earthlings of the Raincoast: A Field Guide. 📝
Students will be making observations in the field and adding them to their very own field guides as the year progresses. 📕
For our first entry, we focused on the trees surrounding the school grounds. Stay tuned for more additions!🌲
Field School Project: Earthlings of the Raincoast
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Animals come in many forms. One helpful way to split them up is in the groups invertebrate and vertebrate. 🐟🐺 This is what Ms. Hirst`s class focused on.
First, brainstorming some examples from their own lives, we got familiar with the idea of animals with no bones and animals with bones. 🦴 But we realized that some invertebrates have things that look and feel a lot like bones—shells! 🐚
Next, we looked at some bones and shells from the RES collection, with each student taking turns to place one specimen in either the vertebrate or invertebrate categories. 🐸
Lastly, outside, we took a closer look at some of the local vertebrates by playing the vertebrate relay race! 🦅 Labeling vertebrates as either fish, amphibian, reptile, bird, or mammal. 🐌🐍
Field School Lesson: Vertebrates
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Ms. Avila`s class had a lot of fun exploring the states of matter on a frozen January morning at Tonquin Beach. 🥶
We began with a review of the 3 states of matter, students offering examples of solids, liquids, and gases from their lives. 🏞
Once at the beach, students searched for local examples of each state found around the beach—listing as many as they could! 🌊 After snack and some free play on strange solid stream, we took ourselves on a journey through the water cycle. 💦
Starting at the ocean, we discussed how water evaporates into the sky before it gathers and condenses in clouds to pour back down as precipitation, finally being collected in streams, rivers, and, finally, the ocean once more. ☁️
Field School Topic: States of Matter & the Water Cycle
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Salmon migrate hundreds of kilometers to reproduce in the same stream in which they were born, using their tremendous sense of smell! 🐟
On this gorgeous day, Ms. Sigmund`s group of salmon experts headed down to Big Beach for a salmon-sniffing activity, where students became salmon and home streams. In groups of three, students had to use their sense of smell to identify which "home stream" was their own—just like salmon do! 👃
We learned about Nuu-chah-nulth traditions and the importance of salmon to the Nuu-chah-nulth people, and students quickly identified a model of a Nuu-chah-nulth salmon trap. 🔄
Field School Topic: Salmon/Nuu-chah-nulth Knowledge
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On this cold & rainy day, Ms. LeFevre`s class decided to stay indoors to learn some background information on the respiration, circulation, and digestive systems of marine invertebrates vs. those of humans. 🐚
The students refreshed their knowledge of human systems and did a short research activity in pairs to learn about the systems of sea urchins, sea stars, mussels, sea anemones, crabs, and snails. 🦀
While not our most adventurous field school, this group is now ready to continue our project on invertebrate body systems by intertidaling at Big Beach next time! 🌊
Field School Topic: Invertebrate vs human systems
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In this field school, Ms. Soltysik`s kindergarteners became forest experts! 🌳 We learned all about the parts of trees — roots, bark, crown — and the layers of a forest — forest floor, understory, canopy — and set off into the woods with our magnifying glasses to get to know the species that make up our beautiful forests. 🍃
We started with a forest walk and talked about our most common animal and plant species we see, and how they`re different in the winter than in the summer. Then students did a scavenger hunt to identify newly learned species and plants on their own. 🦌
We then made bark engravings with paper and crayons and talked about how different trees have different bark.🌲 We finished up this field school with a craft, where students decorated their very own fairy doors with markers and decorations collected in the forests — these students were so creative and kind, and I had a tree-lly good time with this class! 🧚♀️
Field School Lesson: Forest in Winter
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Ms. Wilson`s kindergarten/grade 1 class had a beary exciting day! 🫐
We started off this field school with Bruce, the bear pelt, looking at all the adaptations that help black bears thrive in our coastal forests, like their big teeth, detachable lips, sticky tongues, furry bodies, huge claws and more! 🐻
We went down to Big Beach, where we learned to walk like bears -- with the same-side arm and leg moving forward at the same time — and played a hibernation-themed game where we collected food before winter. ❄️
We then did some relay races running in our natural form to experience how different those modes of movement feel. We finished up this field school by each decorating our own bear mask and playing on the rocks. What a wonderful way to spend a morning! 🌳
Field School Topic: Black Bears
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In this field school, Ms. Tremblay`s Grade 2-3 students became chemists! 👨🔬
This brilliant group learned about states of matter, atoms, and molecules, demonstrating such curiosity and understanding of the invisible world of microscopic particles. ⚛️
Students used marshmallows and toothpicks to create beautiful (and delicious!) marshmolecules, modeling compounds like carbon dioxide, water, ozone, hydrogen peroxide, and more! After exercising our brains, we headed outside to the schoolyard, where students became water molecules in an exciting game of Molecule Tag!
Overall, this was a great bonding experience! 🔎
Field School Lesson: Atoms and molecules
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IIn this field school, Ms. Santos’s Grade 6-7 students explored the magical and tiny world of plankton! 🔎
We headed to the 52-step dock with our equipment and used a plankton tow to collect water samples concentrated with plankton for observation back in the classroom—and we found a (plank)TON! 🧫
Students learned how to use compound and dissecting microscopes to observe our microscopic friends and discover their crucial role in the marine food web. 🔬 Using their creativity and curiosity, students collected a variety of their own samples to examine and explore! 🧪
Field School Lesson: Plankton + microscopes
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In their third field school of the year, Ms. Brinkman`s grade 6s and 7s trekked out to the Wild Pacific Trail to do the Bog Loop in search of tardigrades! 🍃
Tardigrades, also known as water bears or moss piglets, are microscopic animals capable of withstanding incredibly harsh conditions. 🔬 From freezing temperatures to extreme heat, the bottom of the ocean to outer space, tardigrades have been the subject of scientific study for decades. 🧫
We used our microscope knowledge from last field school to search for these amazing little creatures in moss samples collected on our walk. 💧
This was a moss-t special day! 🌱
Field School Lesson: Tardigrades/microscopes
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In Ms Harling and Ms.Taylor`s joint class, we all became scientists! 🧑🔬
We learned all about states of matter, and how different substances have different qualities. We did a chemistry experiment on different liquids using the scientific method -- our question: do all liquids act the same? 💧
Throughout this lab, we used water, oil and syrup droplets to investigate the differences between different liquids. 📓
Our conclusion, different liquids have different qualities! This laboratory was fab! 🥼
Field School Lesson: Chemistry - qualities of liquids
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Support
Raincoast Field School is made possible with the support of the administration and teaching staff at local schools, and the generosity of organizations, businesses, and individuals within the community. The curriculum is designed to build upon itself each year, representing a long-term commitment to the students. Our instructors are highly skilled educators in a full-time position with the RES, committed to the program, and the community they teach in.
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