Summer Is Here!
High temps in the upper 80s (two days in the 90s!), loud thunderstorms, swarms of mosquitos, and pestering deer flies have kicked off the summer time buzz at Deep Portage. The forest is alive with young animals! White-tail deer fawns have been spotted around campus, an adult porcupine with its porcupette were taking a stroll down the driveway, and grouse and turkey broods are staying close behind their mothers. While these animals can be cute to look at, remember to give them space and respect. White-tail deer mothers will leave their fawns for hours at a time, while the fawn lays still in the grass. If you come across a lonely fawn, let it be! Its mother will be back shortly.
The prairie scape around campus has been taking shape with the increasing heat. New to bloom in the prairie this week is large beardtongue (Penstemon grandiflorus). Inside the flower are dark purple stripes that act as a runway for its pollinators; these are called nectar guides. We have also noticed at large amount of blue flag iris (Iris versicolor) blooming along many Cass county ponds and wetlands. Keep an eye out for more lake shore and prairie plants to bloom in the coming weeks.
On May 30th and June 6th, Deep Portage staff members and friends went on birding “Big Days.” A Big Day is an event where birders search for as many birds as they can find in one day. Each time, we spent a couple of hours at Deep Portage then took off into different parts of Cass county. The highlights for both trips were: roughly 95 species each day, 48 species at DP on June 6, a rare Ruddy Turnstone at Sugar Point beach on Leech Lake May 30th, and Semipalmated Plover and Semipalmated Sandpipers at Longville sewer ponds June 6th. You can check out the checklists on the DPLC eBird hotspot website: https://ebird.org/hotspot/L823643
The buildings remain closed due to COVID-19 but our trails are still open to use, so please come out for a hike and explore! We are starting to plan for summer public programming opportunities to stay tuned for those. The driveway gate will be closing at 4:30 pm each day. You can still walk the trails around campus after it is closed, but no parking beyond the gate after 430pm.
The topic of using familiar characters in preschool learning gives me a few things to think about, especially when the discussion moves beyond general advice. A familiar character can make a new classroom routine feel easier to approach. I would use that point as a starting question when considering preschool storytelling activities. I would be interested in a simple example, because it is often the ordinary details that make an idea memorable. How can a story character support learning while leaving children room to create?
Considering developing a reflective approach to learning, I keep coming back to the difference between knowing about an idea and putting it into practice. Looking back at a task can reveal which part was difficult and which strategy helped. Seen this way, reflective learning habits becomes a topic to explore rather than something to sum up too quickly. I do not have a settled view yet, but this seems like a good place to slow down and look more closely. How can reflection remain practical rather than becoming another form to complete?
Thinking about making health information easier to understand, I find the smaller practical questions more interesting than a quick conclusion. Plain language can help readers recognise what a health explanation does and does not establish. I would keep that thought nearby when looking for ideas about health information literacy. The part I would like to explore further is what happens when the idea meets a real situation with its own limitations. What makes a health information page understandable to someone without specialist knowledge?
A conversation about understanding media messages more carefully seems most useful to me when it leaves space for uncertainty and further questions. Separating a claim from the evidence offered for it makes a message easier to examine. I would use that point as a starting question when considering media literacy skills. I do not have a settled view yet, but this seems like a good place to slow down and look more closely. What questions should readers ask before sharing a striking headline?
Mùa hè đến là tôi lại nghĩ tới mấy thứ vớ vẩn buổi tối, kiểu ngồi đếm ngày còn mấy ngày nữa được đi biển. Bài này viết ngắn gọn mà đúng tâm trạng, không mô tả gì to tát cả. Buổi chiều tôi hay lướt điện thoại lúc rảnh, gặp JD88 trong danh sách mấy trang hay hiện ra, thường thì tôi cũng chỉ lướt qua chứ không để ý. Nhưng chính vì vậy mà khi có người viết bằng giọng vui vẻ như thế này về một chủ đề rất bình thường, tôi cũng thấy dễ chịu. Mùa này nắng sớm tắt, đọc bài xong thôi đầu lại nghĩ tới kỳ nghỉ chứ không phải lịch trình.