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Additional Parkland a Possibility by K. Krupa and J. Lloyd

3/26/2014

Near the township soccer fields at Hickory Ridge Pines Park lies a special piece of land. I remember walking through the township park along the fence line and marveling at the nearby fields and grasslands, thinking to myself that it would make a wonderful addition to the existing park. Now, finally, this possibility may become a reality. The Highland Conservancy fully supports this acquisition, and we hope Highland Township's will apply for a Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund grant to purchase the additional lands adjacent to Hickory Ridge Pines Township Park. Below is an excerpt from our president Jim Lloyd's March 26th letter to our township supervisor:

The Township Parks play an important role in providing youth recreation opportunities in the community that other local, state, county and Metropark lands cannot fulfill. Hickory Ridge Pines Park has been the home to the Huron Valley Soccer Club for decades and they have been good stewards of the park. The Club has provided outdoor recreation to thousands of local children over the years. However, their long term success has resulted in the shortage of available soccer fields. The Highland Conservancy supports all opportunities for outdoor recreation for their beneficial effects upon the health of the community.

We are entering another active period of urban sprawl and there is significant development pressure on vacant lands. We believe it is important to secure this available park land while it is available. In the near future additional lands will no longer be available.

The additional land will enhance the existing trail system allowing walkers and hikers to have a higher
quality experience with nature.

The Directors of the Highland Conservancy fully support the acquisition of this additional park land. If
this land is not purchased it likely will be sold on the open market and never available again.Sincerely
James Lloyd
President - Highland Conservancy
www.highlandconservancy.net

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Students learn about Endangered Animals by Katheryn Krupa

3/15/2014

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Lying in bed, I was thinking about Jacque Cousteau and the animal and nature shows I used to be able to watch on Animal Planet and PBS. It was time to show our students a good, short documentary on endangered animals and the importance of saving them from extinction. As a board member of the Highland Conservancy, I decided this should be the theme for this year’s Huron Valley Earth Day poster contest. It’s so important that our children understand how the loss of one animal in an ecosystem can have huge implications. It was also time for some research and in-depth study!

Students at Oxbow Elementary visited appropriate websites such as National Geographic to learn about different endangered animals, and how and why they are heading toward extinction. They studied how each animal faces a different set of problems such as being hunted for their beautiful fur (which are made into coats and hats) or loss of habitat due to slash and burn farming or other poor farming techniques, or poaching due to the ivory trade. There are some great websites for students. Visit the World Wildlife Fund, click on species and click on endangered species. You’ll find a photo and extensive information about each endangered animal…http://worldwildlife.org/species/directory?sort=extinction_status&direction=desc

You can also visit: http://animalstime.com/endangered/

In kindergarten, first and second grade, we watched an Eye Witness video on Insects and then made Shoe Bugs. We talked about what an insect is, metamorphosis, predator and prey and other insect facts…how some insects like the praying mantis are rare and how important it is to leave these creatures in their natural homes and not try to catch them for pets. This was a review of last year’s insect unit and a preview for our upcoming butterfly lesson on vulnerable monarchs! Third through fifth graders watched several short vignettes by Jeff Corwin on how and why the polar bear and sea turtle and few other key species are going extinct. Students then spent several weeks completing their Endangered Animals posters targeting a specific species and including facts and solutions to save them from extinction. You might say, "Wait, is this an art class or science?" Don't worry, we still learned about layout, focal point, contrast, color, and variety but in an authentic way! These and other earth day posters will be on display at the Huron Valley Earth Day Festival at Carl's Family YMCA in Milford, MI. Join us on April 27th from noon to 4pm for this family friendly event! Below is an earth day poster from a White Lake Middle School student - a runner up for this year's 2014 contest.

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Additional Parkland a Possibility by K. Krupa and J. Lloyd

Students learn about Endangered Animals by Katheryn Krupa

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