Soil Tent Development: A collaboration between scientists, artists, students and educators
In 2016, the project was prototyped through a series of three interdisciplinary STEAM residencies in NH public school fourth-grade classrooms and the program is now available to schools and community sites. The residencies combined Elementary GLOBE soil curriculum materials; hands-on soil science observation with White Mountain National Forest Soil Scientist Andy Colter; and production of large-scale soil murals in collaboration with Artist in Residence Julie Püttgen.
Student, teacher, scientist, artist, and arts organization responses to the 2016 residencies were overwhelmingly positive. On the science front, students reported newfound enthusiasm for being outdoors, observing the ground beneath their feet, digging, and soil science as a potential career. On the arts front, students reported being amazed at their ability to create enormous, tactile, visually complex imagery together as a group, with their own hands. They wrote beautiful poems and reports, expressed themselves across media, and learned to incorporate their observations from the natural world into their creative endeavors, as generations of artist-scientists before them have done. Teachers reported great satisfaction in seeing students experience public land – including their own schoolyards – and in watching them collaborate across classrooms and disciplines. Educators were also excited about being invited themselves to participate as learners, scientists, artists in an integrated learning experience.
Learn more about the experience at the three New Hampshire Schools below:
Student, teacher, scientist, artist, and arts organization responses to the 2016 residencies were overwhelmingly positive. On the science front, students reported newfound enthusiasm for being outdoors, observing the ground beneath their feet, digging, and soil science as a potential career. On the arts front, students reported being amazed at their ability to create enormous, tactile, visually complex imagery together as a group, with their own hands. They wrote beautiful poems and reports, expressed themselves across media, and learned to incorporate their observations from the natural world into their creative endeavors, as generations of artist-scientists before them have done. Teachers reported great satisfaction in seeing students experience public land – including their own schoolyards – and in watching them collaborate across classrooms and disciplines. Educators were also excited about being invited themselves to participate as learners, scientists, artists in an integrated learning experience.
Learn more about the experience at the three New Hampshire Schools below: