Driving Question
How can life exist in the desert without much water?
Grades Involved
Kindergarten and 1st
How did this project connect to the local or regional community?
Families in Teton Valley frequently visit the desert in Utah for family vacations. One student had recently been on one of these trips and was inspired by the nature he saw while hunting. He shared his ideas with the class and the others quickly got on board.
What PBE Principles were highlighted in this project?
Local to Global and Inquiry Based
Project Description
This project was about studying the ecology, biology, and human history of the desert. We sought to answer the question, “How can life exist in the desert without much water?” Water (or the lack there of) was our central topic – something we kept returning back to at every step. Throughout, we used our home place in Teton Valley as a touch point, comparing and contrasting the desert biome to our local habitat.
Reflection
This topic was broad, so we knew that we would need to stretch it out over a longer period of time than usual. This longer time frame required us to think differently about how we designed the project, making sure to create pockets of time for reflection and re-engagement throughout in order to keep interest and motivation going.
