New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
The Buttonwood Park Zoological Society has received an anonymous donation to provide transportation to all New Bedford 1st and 2nd graders to visit the Zoo. Schools started visiting the Buttonwood Park Zoo in late October and are booked through mid-December. The Zoo’s Education Curator, Carrie Hawthorne has been working with the schools to coordinate visits and environmental education. Hawthorne is ecstatic about the funding and the opportunity it provides to the cities youngest learners. “The Zoo offers free admission and programming to New Bedford students but it is underutilized due to transportation costs; this funding ensures that we will reach all 1st and 2nd graders with environmental education this school year.”
Each school is at the Zoo for 2 hours during which time they participate in one of the following environmental education programs:
Water – Students will explore the physical properties of water and explore where water is found around the world.
Weather – Students connect the water cycle and weather. How do phase changes create weather? What do weather systems look like on a global scale? Explore the atmosphere over land, water, the poles, around the world!
Wonder of Birds – What makes a bird a bird? (Hint: It’s probably not what you think!) Join us as we explore eggs, feathers, and the other unique characteristics of our feathered friends.
“Our students in elementary schools across the city have the opportunity to benefit from more than 80 education programs at the Buttonwood Park Zoo because of the incredible generosity of an anonymous donor. We are grateful that through that generosity, 2,000 students can learn more about the natural world, deeply tied not only to science but also other key academic areas, through hands-on learning that will stay with them,” said Superintendent Pia Durkin.
