L.A. teacher studies Australian wildlife

Wendy Gorton, a teacher at Hancock Park Elementary School, writes from Australia, where she is on a National Geographic trip for teachers and children:

(Wendy Gorton holds a koala at Kuranda Koala Gardens)

Alex Bentley, one of the National Geographic Hands-On Explorer Challenge winners, pulled a branch in front of him at Hartley's Crocodile Reserve in Cairns, and a shower of green ants poured out. The student explorers and teachers all plucked one up and squeezed the abdomen in their mouths, enjoying the lemony burst of flavor -- and occasional appendage.

Yup, we're still in Australia, and the adventures continue.

Catherine Hughes, one of our National Geographic Expedition leaders, prepared the students for writing nature and expedition journals. Students were encouraged to take messy field notes and to sketch color, size and details of things in the moment and identify their species later. The explorers furiously wrote about the odd relationship between the bumpy satin ash and the strangular fig that grows downward on it.

Seeing these kids so dutifully sketching in their books and thoughtfully documenting these moments inspired me to keep nature journals going in my classroom next year, whether to jot down a thought about a type of plant or to sketch a bird in flight or to gather a scrap that symbolizes that day.

(Joshua Stitzinger and Wendy Gorton help Hambledon students in Cairns and National Geographic Kids winners plant a native plant at their school garden.)

We boarded a boat at Hartley's Crocodile Adventures and students got a quick lesson in action photography as they switched to super-fast shutter speeds and continuous release modes, allowing them to capture the croc mid-feed. "If you look," our guide Andrew said, "You can see the dilated pupils of their eyes, indicating they're nocturnal animals" Who knew that this group of kids would ever be able to stare in the face of a croc feeding and not only live to tell the tale, but share some fantastic photographs of it, too?

"Coooooo-weeeeee!" In a flash, we were transferred by coach to Blazing Saddles Ranch in Cairns, and heard the call of the authentic Australian jackaroo, or cowboy. Explorers saddled up to a horse and got to walk and trot their horses through the Australian ranch, seeing termite mounds and gum trees along the way. Afterward, we tasted "billy tea" (made by swinging a hot, lidless cauldron, or billy, in the air and a bread called damper. Then our resident jackaroo let us have a try at the whip, used for herding.

Another day ended and our bodies slowly began to realize were were about 11 hours off, and we headed down to the night markets, getting $10 massages and trying our hand at didgeridoos.

Students started species lists in their journals after heading into the misty rain forest jungle of Kuranda the next day, immediately marking the crested cockatiel floating around the gondola we took up above the canopy of Barron Gorge National Park, in forests that are part of a World Heritage Area. Australia boasts 17 of them, but California has two of its own, Yosemite and Redwoods national parks. If you want to get your own taste of cable car madness, check out the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.

Something that was definitely nature-journaled was the hands-on exposure to some of the world's most exotic animals; we cuddled koalas, who sleepily latched on to our shoulders without a care in the world, and fed wallabies and kangaroos. We waited until dusk to head off to Cairns Night Zoo, spying night owls and crocs, and ended the night hike with a rousing dance with everyone to Australia's unofficial anthem, "Waltzing Matilda."

Part of the National Geographic Kids Hands-On Explorer Challenge includes working with people as well. Annie reminded students that when photographing people to approach them with a smile, and if there are many cameras on one subject, to find your own spot, which explorers picked up on quickly.

Hambledon State School in Cairns was alive with excitement as students welcomed our crew. A chat with the teachers revealed that in Australia, project-based learning is often the norm, and it shows in the students' engagement, enthusiasm and articulation

"The whole school was outdoor-oriented, and they were so open; they would hold your hand and were helpful, kind and nice!" Veronica Wilson of Nebraska remarked about the the K-7 campus on lush tropical grounds, which is a part of the Guardians of the Reef program, an educational effort to conserve the Great Barrier Reef. If you are interested in pursuing a similar program in Southern California, you might be interested in the Key to the Sea program through Heal the Bay.

After playing reef ecosystem activities, recycling old materials to play Olympic Games and planting a native tree in the school garden, it was hard to tell which kids were Americans and which were Aussies. We gathered e-mail addresses for future cross-cultural projects between our classes.

"Art is our written language," said Ernest, our guide at Tjubakai Cultural Center nearby, who helped us switch gears to the past as he shared with us the many ways the Aboriginal people of Australia communicated. We dotted our own boomerangs with Aboriginal designs and then got a chance to throw them, concentrating not on strength, but on wrist-action. Most students and adults were able to get theirs airborne and back again.

Natural colors were applied to our faces to prepare us for the dancing ceremony. A bull-roarer sounded and I nearly thought I was in the Santa Monica Mountains studying the Chumash and Tongva with my students in Los Angeles. Next stop? Tasmania to work with more students and the Tasmanian devil! If you want to read student explorers' account of our adventure, check out their blog.

Photos courtesy of Wendy Gorton

Comments

[Livia Live]

These are great pictures of Aussie wildlife.