Last summer, Pamela James, an American History teacher at
Sandalwood High School and Mary Mott, an American History teacher at
James Weldon Johnson Middle School, participated in the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve’s “Parks as Classrooms” Program.
The “Parks as Classrooms” program is the curriculum-based educational program of the National Park Service that emphasizes experiential teaching and learning techniques. It is specifically designed to help teachers meet their curriculum needs through the resources found at national park sites. Unlike textbooks, or even museums, national parks represent the real thing in the right place.
The program uses the natural, cultural and historical resources of parks to offer free or low-cost opportunities to supplement classroom instruction. They are offered by individual national park sites, in collaboration with local school districts and community organizations.
Both James and Mott spent eight weeks working as park rangers at the Timucuan Preserve. They staffed the visitor center, gave programs to visitors and helped the park update its curriculum materials, adding more than 15 new activities for teachers to use in the classroom and at the park.
During their time as park rangers, James and Mott also participated in a project, sponsored in part by a “Parks as Classrooms” grant, to create a free DVD that allows educators to bring Jacksonville's National Park to schools.
The grant provided funds for the development of this educational DVD that educators can use to prepare their students for a trip to the park, or it can be used by teachers who can't bring students to the park, but can still use the resources of the Timucuan Preserve in their classroom.
2009
Douglas Anderson School of the Arts graduates, Andy Leverett and Greg Letson, interviewed James and Motts, who both wrote vignettes for the interactive project and starred in its segments.
Throughout the summer, Andy and Greg worked on the film project as park employees, and are transitioning to do work in park visitor centers, as well as continuing to work on park films for educators.
Andy and Greg, along with Ximena Vergara, a graphic design intern at UNF, have also established a YouTube channel for the park as an additional place to host the films.
Several segments of the DVD, titled "Timucuan Adventures," are complete. The remaining segments will be completed this fall and the DVDs will be available after the winter holidays.
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