Opportunity for Current NAMS Grades 7 & 8 Students

FIELD ECOLOGY AND GEOLOGY COURSE – TETON MOUNTAIN SCHOOL, JACKSON, WYOMING

Tentative Itinerary and Course Objectives:

This summer field course will take place on the campus of the Teton Mountain School in Jackson, Wyoming.   Jackson is just outside Teton National Park and an hour south of Yellowstone National Park, both of which are areas renowned for their biological and geological wonders.  Teton Mountain School is a field school that specializes in teaching science programs about the Teton/Yellowstone ecosystems to k-12 students. This class will focus on teaching students about the local ecology and geology/geomorphology of the area.   For 6 days, we will stay in dormitories at the Teton Mountain School in Jackson. Here we will look at the geology and glacial geomorphology of Jackson Hole, so that students understand the geology that created the “hole”/valley where the town is located, and the surrounding Teton Mountains.  Then we will look at how the glaciers have weathered these mountains and created their current features and topography on a hike up into the valley to an active glacier. We will also study the ecology of the unique ecosystem within Jackson Hole. We will also spend 5 days and 4 nights touring and camping in Yellowstone National Park.   This section of the class will cover several different subjects that are unique to Yellowstone. We will study the geology that is behind the formation of the remarkable geologic features found in Yellowstone, such as geysers and hot springs, as well as the volcanic geology that created the park itself (it is a hotspot, much like Hawaii, but in the center of a continent).   We will hike to a fossil forest where entire forests were buried by volcanic ash and fossilized, leaving standing trunks of rock. We will also study fire ecology, looking at how Yellowstone has recovered from the devastating wildfires that burned much of the park a decade ago, and how this influences the ecology of the region. Finally, we will study how the reintroduction of wolves into the Yellowstone ecosystem and how this has changed the ecology of the park and the importance of top predators in other ecosystems.  

All meals, lodging, bedding, and transportation while in Jackson is included in the tuition price and will be handled by the Teton Mountain School.  Tuition will also include transportation to Logan Airport and the cost of the airline ticket to Jackson, WY. Linens, sleeping bag and pad, and camping equipment are all included in the price.  

If you are interested in learning more about this trip, please attend the meeting in Mr Richard's room on Monday October 21st from 2:20-3:00 PM.

If you are unable to attend this meeting, please contact Mr. Richard for more information at richardc@northandoverpublicschools.com