July 2020 Coffee & Discussion Minutes

Topic: Creative programming in the midst of the pandemic; Virtual and beyond
Location: Virtual

Speaker Presentations:
Carolyn Wagner, Mighty Acorns Coordinator for The Conservation Foundation

• Mighty Acorns is a youth stewardship program that connects 3rd-5th graders to experiential learning opportunities in local ecosystems
• COVID-19 Adaptations
• Pre-recorded hikes at adopted natural areas
  • Sent to teachers along with scavenger hunt worksheets, so students can follow along with the videos or go out with their families and go on their own scavenger hunt
• Had students download Merlin app and use it to help ID birds they see on the virtual hikes
• Issues of connectivity, not all students have wifi/internet access, not all families have enough devices for multiple students
  • To adapt, they distributed activity packets to teachers to pass out along with food distributions for families unable to access virtual content
• Supplemental activities:
  • Providing scavenger hunts/bingo sheets to follow along with, & hands on crafts/activities
  • Allowing time for students to share reflections on Zoom and through journaling/drawing
  • Encouraged students to go out in their yards, neighborhoods, or local parks to find a “nature spot” for observation
  • For stewardship, asked students to pick up trash in their neighborhood

 
Amy Phillips, Youth Program Manager at The Conservation Foundation

• Questions they considered while forming adapted programming
  • What is the mission we are trying to accomplish? 
  • How can we adapt to maintain this mission as the context changes?
• Created “Family Adventures” instead of usual drop-off camps, which were cancelled
  • Families came out together, only two families at a time, for guided and self-guided activities
  • Parents were responsible for face masks & social distancing
• Created modified summer camps in Phase 4
  • Outdoor, half-day camps, two small groups of 8 kids w/ masks and distancing
  • Used the raccoon as the mascot, since they’re always wearing masks and always washing their hands
• Fall plans
  • No school field trips
  • Instead of targeting teachers for school groups, reaching out to parents to bring out their families

 
Adam Kessel, Program Coordinator for the Forest Preserves of Cook County

• Offered “I Have Nature!” kits in partnership with CPS Grab n’ Go Lunch Sites
  • Provide families with a five minute craft, provided unique kits from April - June
    • Activities included seed planting, toilet paper roll bird feeders, etc.
• Beaubien Woods Celebration @ Home
  • Drive through version of annual event
  • Partners provided gear for give-away bags, offered pick up locations at various FPCC sites
  • Showcased a hiking trail at each site for self-led hikes and opportunity to use resources from the bags
• Youth Outdoor Ambassador Interns
  • Offering full virtual or onsite positions
  • Providing virtual field trainings
• Now expanding virtual options
  • Providing nature kits to participants ahead of time to use during virtual program
  • Virtual field trips for schools

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Break Out Group Discussions:
 
Group 1 (Mighty Acorns/Carolyn Wagner):
- What will help you make better adaptations?

• Understanding virtual platforms better – zoom, google classroom and be able to interchange the use based on audience/host limitations
• Cameras to help capture film for things like dissection, 360 cameras
• Understanding limitations of technology – battery life isn’t strong in extreme conditions (too hot, too cold)
• Maybe target schools that are adjacent/within walking distance to open space

- What new programs were created to inspire connections to outdoors

• Adapt lesson plans to help student explore backyard/neighborhood
• Provide programs for family units and lesson plans for school grounds connections

- What is the organization’s role in getting people outside?

• Working with physical education teachers as a way to connect to outdoors
• Snail mail to zoom class?

 
Group 2 (Farm Camp/ Amy Phillips):
- What are the needs with the new parameters to address COVID?

• More organizational support/training on running virtual programs
  • ZOOM; google; FB
  • LiveCamera usage; audio devices etc.

- What are your organizational safety protocols?

• How do they vary for children v. adults?

- How are we sharing these protocols with participants and staff?
- How are your programming objectives inline or not in line with the realities of the pandemic?

• Need to let participants establish their own comfort levels and create a wide variety of participation opportunities.

- What new programming avenues have been developed or are needed?

• Chicago park district has prerecorded a 30-day video series for summer campers that are at home and not attending in person camps
  • They also plan on broadcasting on WTTW to address internet access issues in various communities

- How can we find out what other organizations are doing?

• Connecting with Evanston Environmental Association
• Sharing resources with NCH2 at [email protected]

 
Group 3 (I Have Nature/Adam Kessel):
- What is needed (infrastructure, technology, logistics) to reinvent programs for current parameters?

• The abruptness and urgency of the need to modify program offerings can be an opportunity to be creative and to take risks that may fail. 
• Rather than trying to “do it all”, organizations should take small, incremental steps

- Can new program delivery models increase equitable access?

• Possible, in those situations where virtual access is easier/safer than physical access
• Technology availability and expertise exists on a wide spectrum, making virtual access uneven
• Current approach should further awareness of need to open opportunity as much as possible; pandemic can make access even more difficult than previously

- What is an organization’s role/goal in getting people outside?

• All organizations represented in this breakout group have “getting people outside” as an integral part of their mission

- Other thoughts:

• One challenge is to avoid repetition in format or content , e.g. over-doing virtual scavenger hunts
• Interesting ideas:
  • Virtual camping
  • Virtual pen pals
• As schools reconvene in the next month or so, it is anticipated that parents and teachers will be eager for ideas on getting kids outside and engaged with the non-screen world