Exploring Birds & Biodiversity with eBird Workshop (South Carolina)
Inspire your students’ science learning with birds!
Dates: Monday-Wednesday, June 12-14, 2023
Time: 8:15 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Earlewood Park, Columbia, SC
Audience : 3rd-8th grade educators
You are invited to register for this fun, active, and engaging three-day learning experience! You’ll practice citizen science, spend time outdoors, learn more about birds and how to attract them to your schoolyard, and take field trips. Enjoy time exploring local habitats, while learning from and connecting with other educators. You will engage with educators from the City of Columbia Parks, the South Carolina Garden-based Learning Network, and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Choose from either the 3-5 or 6-8 versions of eBird Explorers curriculum kit, and leave ready to use these hands-on materials in your classroom.
During this transformative experience, you will:
- Enjoy a bird walk in the Congaree National Park, explore Belser Arboretum, and identify birds along the Saluda River Walk with City of Columbia Park staff.
- Learn how to attract birds to your schoolyard with school gardening expert Dr. Arlene Marturano from the South Carolina Garden-based Learning Network.
- Explore how to build student science skills through outdoor learning and citizen science.
- Discover Cornell Lab’s free educational resources for 3rd-8th grade teachers, including our online field guide, digital library, and citizen-science programs.
- Practice collaboratively teaching the curriculum.
- Earn 2.5 CEUs through University of South Carolina.
- Receive your choice of the 3-5 or 6-8 eBird Explorers curriculum kits. All kits include bird ID cards, posters, hands-on lessons, and unique grade-level resources. You’ll also take home a bird feeder.
Who should attend?
We welcome 3rd-8th classroom educators, STEM coordinators, and school librarians/media specialists looking for innovative ways to teach STEM content and develop science literacy. Non-formal educators that teach the same students multiple times (such as for library or after-school programming or summer camps) will also find the workshop useful.
Accessibility: The Cornell Lab K-12 team is dedicated to providing a harassment-free and discrimination-free experience at this workshop. We aim for professional development and educational exchange in the spirit of free discussion and expression in an environment in which diverse attendees may learn, network, and enjoy the company of colleagues. We are committed to providing an open and welcoming environment for all participants, including but not limited to race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, ability, socioeconomic status, age, religion, and veteran or military service status.
Detailed logistics and policies
To make the most of our time together, please complete the free eBird Essentials course prior to attending. The course takes approximately 3 hours to complete and will give you the fundamentals of eBird participation.
Dates: June 12-14, 2023
Time: 8:15 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., each day. Lunch and snacks will be provided all 3 days of the workshop.
Location: Earlewood Park, 1113 Recreation Dr, Columbia, SC 29203 will be the base camp for this workshop and we will spend the majority of our time here. However, on two mornings we will meet at Congaree National Park and Belser Arboretum for off-site field trips.
Costs: We want this workshop to be accessible to all participants. Due to increased planning costs and the impact of cancellations, this workshop has a $90 reservation fee. However, if you attend all days of the workshop, your $90 fee will be automatically refunded to your credit card within 2 weeks. If you cancel your reservation less than 30 days before the workshop or do not show up to this workshop, we will be unable to refund this fee. If the upfront registration fee represents a burden that makes it impossible for you to attend, please reach out to us at K12Lab@cornell.edu.
Register today! Click the “register now” button to reserve your seat. Registration closes May 07, 2023.
Cornell Lab Cancellation and COVID-19 Policy: We reserve the right to cancel this workshop up to 4 weeks prior to the workshop due to under-registration or unforeseen circumstances. If we cancel, you will receive a full refund. We are guided by Cornell University’s COVID policy. At this time, masks are welcome but not required.
