WHAT IS ELF?
ELF = Environmental Learning for the Future
Environmental Learning for the Future is an educational program developed to promote an understanding and appreciation of the natural world and increase environmental literacy. We hope to encourage children’s curiosity and concern about the natural world and to provide hands-on experiences for learning. ELF encompasses four different year-long concepts: Cycles, Adaptations, Designs of Nature, and Earth and Sky. ELF has been piloted in classrooms here at Mitchell with great reviews. It has also been very successful for the past 19 years at our neighboring school, Kyffin Elementary, where they have a tremendous amount of parent and teacher support. We are hoping to continue the success of the program at Mitchell.
Email with questions: mitchellelf@gmail.com
2023-24 School Year
Adaptations
Adaptations is our topic for the 2023-2024 school year. Adaptations are characteristics that develop over time (hundreds of thousands of years) to give a plant or animal a better chance to survive in its environment.
Adaptation is, first of all, a process, rather than a physical part of a body. All adaptations help organisms survive in their own ecological environment. These adaptive traits may be structural, behavioral or physiological. Adaptation, then, affects all aspects of the life of an organism.
Unit One: Birds, Feet and Feathers (Sept 18 - Oct 4)
Birds have exceptional adaptations that enable them to fly, keep warm and procure food. We'll examine the adapted structures and uses of birds' feathers and feet as well as explore how a birds' beak and feet are designed to work together to help it eat and survive.
Unit Two: Teeth and Skulls (Nov 1 - Nov 17)
Different types of teeth are adapted to grasp, hold, and chew different kinds of food. Examining the kinds of teeth an animal has and the shape of it's jaw and skull gives clues about its life and the food it eats.
Unit Three: Hunter-Hunted (Jan 16 - Jan 31)
Animals that hunt other animals for food (predators), and the animals that they hunt (prey) each have special adaptations that help them to survive the challenges of their particular roles.
Unit Four: Thorns and Threats (Feb 29 - Mar 15)
To protect themselves, plants and animals have developed many different defensive adaptations and we’ll take a look at them in depth.
Unit Five: Seed Dispersal (May 2 - May 17)
Seeds have many adaptations that help them travel away from their parent plants to new locations. There will be lots of hands on observation of a wide variety of seeds and seed bearing structures for our students and volunteers.