Eva Lamp is an Elementary School teacher in Kemmerer, Wyoming who is implementing the “Expedition Yellowstone,” project with her 4th grade students. By implementing some innovative Audio-Visual tools, she has made this trip to Yellowstone one that these students will never forget.
Question: How long have you been in education?
Answer: I have been teaching for 30 years.
Question: What do you like best about being an educator?
Answer: I enjoy working with the students and my fellow colleagues. My hope is that I make a difference in their lives.
Question: Explain the importance of technology in your curriculum and your everyday teaching strategies?
Answer: Technology plays an important role with today’s students. My students are exposed to all kinds of technology. They are in the computer lab at least 5 times a week doing a variety of projects including keyboarding, creative writing, and multi-media projects. Several curriculum based applications and games are also accessed in the computer lab. In my classroom, I use a smartboard to introduce new concepts and help my students better understand difficult topics. The student’s daily schedule is displayed on the TV monitor.
Question: Explain the “Expedition Yellowstone,” project and how you came about this great opportunity?
Answer: Expedition Yellowstone is sponsored by the National Park Foundation. It is an environmental education program coordinated with the Yellowstone Park Rangers. The program is the answer to the school teacher’s continual quest for “educational moments” – real live events that catch, hold, and challenge student’s minds. From the geological make-up of mudpots to the feeding habits of grizzly bears, the Expedition curriculum provides useful teaching tips and lively exercises to help elementary school students make the most of a class visit to Yellowstone National Park. It is the culmination of many years of work with young people by the Park Rangers in Yellowstone National Park. Selection to the program is based upon a lottery system and is available nation wide for grades 4-6. Each teacher enters a fall or spring lottery hoping for his number to be chosen. Schools are chosen based upon those that have never participated, those who have and have a good evaluation, and those that have a fair evaluation. After being selected, the Park Rangers and teacher draw up and agree upon an itinerary of objectives and learning activities that students will complete before, during, and after the expedition.
My philosophy or emphasis is to make sure that my students who participate in Expedition Yellowstone come to understand and appreciate the natural world of Yellowstone and those processes that sustain it. Through the knowledge gained and the activities participated in they will hopefully become watchful stewards of Yellowstone and the Earth. Protection and Preservation being their primary concerns as their respect and love for nature matures. Lastly, I want their expedition to be fun and those rewards of learning to be ingrained as memories they will treasure for a lifetime.
Twenty-three years ago a group of science teachers came back from a conference and told me about the program. We entered the lottery to participate in Expedition Yellowstone and were chosen. I have been participating in the program since.
The project I complete after the expedition is to create a multimedia DVD movie that is played at our parent night.
Question: How long have you been doing this project?
Answer: I have been participating in the ‘Expedition Yellowstone’ program since 1988. I used to create VHS movies until the new technology came out to create multimedia movies and burn them to DVD. For the last two years I have produced DVD movies of our experience in Yellowstone. Before that time I made VHS movies by using a video camera and i-movie software.
Question: How difficult is it to implement?
Answer: The students love the expedition program and can’t wait to get to fourth grade to participate. It is supported by our district and our community. The multimedia project is time consuming but the end result is beyond words. When the DVD is played at parent night the students relive their experience with their parents. We make a copy of the DVD available to the families so they can relive that experience forever.
Question: What hardware or software do I need to do this?
Answer: When we return from Yellowstone I create a multimedia project from digital pictures and video clips along with title cards and music. I create the movie using a multimedia PC with Microsoft Movie Maker. Then I use Sonic MyDVD to generate menus for the dvd interface. Next, I burn a DVD for each student and we have a parent night in which we share our experience with their parents.
Question: How did you receive the funding for this project, and what technologies were you able to use with this funding?
Answer: I applied for a grant from the Williams Foundation. We received $3,000 from the grant. With the money we purchased a multimedia PC with video editing software, a digital movie camera, color laser printer, and a ‘MovieTime Digital DVD Projector’.
Question: What has been the impact on your students, i.e. Improved time on task, improved
understanding of material, more engaged?
Answer: This technology helped my students relive their Yellowstone experience through a movie. I also use the technology to create a 4th grade dvd of their entire 4th grade year. It includes the plays they perform in, parties, and their culminating Wyoming History Musical play that the students themselves write. The impact it has on my students is they can relive their 4th grade forever.
Question: How can other schools and teachers get involved with a program like this?
Answer: Other schools can apply to participate in Expedition Yellowstone by sending in for the lottery at Expedition Yellowstone P.O. box 168 Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming 82190 or call 307-344-2256 or email Bob_Fuhrmann@nps.gov.
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