Wildlife Words at the World Center for Birds of Prey

Science and the humanities share the goal of helping humans understand our place in the natural world. At the World Center for Birds of Prey, learn from scientists about important birds of prey conservation projects and then strike out with your Cabin teaching-writer to transform your new knowledge into wildlife-inspired poems and short stories. Birds of Prey camp will take place this year Tuesday, July 18th through Saturday, July 22nd.Foci for Student Learning:

• Engaging with research and scientific ways of understanding the natural world to find inspiration to write creatively
• Reflective journaling to process nature and science learning
• Analyze nature/environmental creative texts to learn about craft
• Writing, thinking, and talking about conservation/environment and the role of writing in encouraging and defining these concepts
• Learn to use place as more than a backdrop
• Producing nature and science inspired poems and stories
• Reflecting on the artist’s role in questions of our natural environment and conservation
• Responding to what works in one another’s work
• Offering constructive critique for peer’s work towards revision
• Revising for publication

Essential Questions Students Will Investigate:

• What is the role of an artist in communicating honestly about the natural world?
• How do we bridge arts and sciences? How does writing do that?
• Can writers work on ideas related to conservation? The natural world?
• How do we use nature as inspiration?
• How do we write about physical experience?
• What is nature?

2016 Excerpts from our World Center for Birds of Prey campers

CALIFORNIA CONDORS Sebastian WamplerGrade 6, BoiseTheir wings likea redwood treeas large as a giantas loud as aroaring, tumbling waterfallhooked beak like thesharpest rocktalons as strongas diamondseyes so strongthey can see for milesas invulnerable as they might seemtheir life is like a twig about to bestepped on. ROBIN VERSES OWL Reese BurakGrade 4, BoiseOh no! Danger danger danger! It's . . . it's . . . it's an owl. It's going to eat us and our babies with his sharp talons and beak. Fly over here. Let's mob that owl. It's going to eat my babies. It's going to eat my babies. No, it's going to eat my babies. I bet you don't even have a nest. I have a nest. 3-2-1 kill it! Oh no. It got away. Oh no? That's good. DREAMS OF OWLS Jane McKeonGrade 4, BoiseOwls dream about mice scurrying through a field.Owls dream of attacking birds.Owls dream of sleeping while day.Owls dream of winning a Bob dance challenge.Owls dream of soaring through the sky looking for yummy mice.Owls dream of having chicks and raising them to be strong and healthy.Owls dream of all their territory enclosed by chicks hatching.Sometimes owls dream of evil.They dream of drinking their wonderful water.Owls mostly like to dream of other animals. OWL NIGHTMARE Heron RohwederGrade 4, BoiseOne nightFlying like a floating cloudSoaring, then suddenly,Could it be?A million mice roaming under me.They are all so juicyWith flavor galore.I think I'll eat someAnd save some to store.Problem coming.Snowy the messenger:Letter for me,And guess what? I had to seeBob the kestrel flying above me.He soared downAnd said,"I challenge you to a dance competition.""You're on."I wiggled and giggledThen suddenly I moved my head.Oh no! Bob won instead. MY DREAM AS A KESTREL Ginger WamplerGrade 4, BoiseI woke up this morning, and I was an American kestrel. I was so confused. Where am I? Where are my arms? Where are my legs? I'm in a large room. I can't understand myself. What am I saying? I go to my brother's room to see if he is a bird. He is. We both go downstairs. And then go outside. We try flying but we cannot figure out how it works. We finally get it. We are soaring above the ground. It is so amazing. All the flowers and just everything. I realize that people do not know how it feels to have wings. I see something on the ground. It is a mouse. I stay still in the air. I dive . . . and grab it with my talons. It's dying. Blood is rushing out of it. I land and eat it. Then I wake up. I'm in my bed. And I'm a human.