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The End of the Trip!

It's hard to believe the trip is already over. I met so many great people, and learned so much. I feel honored to have participated in this fellowship and experience and I thank HSBC, Earthwatch and my school community for supporting this trip. Thanks also to my students who enjoyed this unique experience fully, and for the enthusiastic welcome home. You had lots of great questions, and was happy to share this experience with you. We will use the research methods, and ecology I learned during our spring service learning unit, so stay tuned!

Thanks for reading!

Cypress Trees Have Knees-

Take a look at these cypress knees. Aren't they neat? We found these in a swamp in the Honey Island Swamp. There are many theories about what they are for. They most certainly provide support and structure for the tree because the soil in the swamp is so wet and malleable. Some scientists think they act as little snorkels, providing oxygen for the tree. The knees are hollow at the tip, and often snakes can live in them.

I'm off to New Orleans today. It's general election day! How exciting. I can't wait to see all of you on Thursday to discuss the results, your studies and my trip!

Maybe I'll see the Park View ghost after all. Do you think he or she is a Democrat or Republican?

Kayaking , and Caterpillar Zoo-

Today I went kayaking again on the river to our new plot site. It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny.

The river here is the color of mud, and the trees are dripping with Spanish moss. Who can tell me what Spanish moss was historically used for? Research it and post a comment, or write about it in your writing notebook.

The mud at the shoreline was thick and sucked my feet in. It was a real workout to pull the kayak on shore and walk 3 feet.

Here is a cool caterpillar that we found. It's in the Geometrid family. What do you think is it's main adaptation for survival? We've been working on the "zoo" (taking care of all the caterpillars), and I have had the opportunity to see many interesting caterpillars.

Talk to you tomorrow!

Happy Halloween from New Orleans-

I know you are all dying for a ghost story! I stayed at the Parkview Hotel, which apparently has a resident ghost in room 4. I am sorry to disappoint, but I did not see any ghostly happenings! I did pay attention, too.

But did you realize that the Ghost Hunter TV show will be filmed at the Park View soon? So there is a documented case of haunting, and the owners will be interviewed. I do have one more opportunity, though, Tuesday night when we stay there again before we leave.

Can you find me in the picture? The Happy Halloween sign is what we did at the bunkhouse before we left for a day off.

"Big Easy" is a nick-name for New Orleans. One reason is because there is a kind of laid back attitude here - people like to kick back and enjoy themselves!
One big festival they have right before lent starts in spring is called Mardis Gras, but next to Mardi Gras, Halloween is the biggest celebration of the year! Everyone gets really into it - we saw lots of houses with really cool decorations.

On the streetcar on the way to the French Quarter, there were so many people in costume!

We went to the French Quarter, where there are lots of clubs and music, and the whole street was like one big party. People here take wearing Halloween costumes very seriously!

I will conference with you tomorrow. I hope it works!

I miss you all.

Ms. Farber

Fall Web Worm (one of our finds!)-

Here's a furry friend we've found a good bit. They are great because they are easy to see and furry (and not stinging). Some of the ones we find are small, but not this one. It's about an inch and the length of the fur varies widely.

Tomorrow or this weekend I'll have spooky tales to share from New Orleans- stay posted!

Caterpillar or Tube of Poo?

I've found that I need to use my observation skills in new ways here. Lots of patience, and careful looking. Science takes a lot of looking.

In this video I am doing what we call "zoo". I'm emptying out the bags (cleaning out the poo, also called "fras"), checking to see if the caterpillars are alive, parasitized (eaten by wasps or flies from the inside out), or if they have expired (died), or if they had pupated (turned into a pupae, getting ready to be an adult moth or butterfly).

All of these will tell the researchers important information. They are gathering all the information about the caterpillars and plants that they can, so they can see the overall trends in relation to global warming and the hurricane.

So, while my video is in jest, every single observation is valuable and progresses the project.

Looking carefully is a life skill. I'm still learning. As you all know, I am a bit spazzy :) and have to remind myself to SLOW DOWN and look at everything.

Please list the 3 new vocabulary words with pictures in your science notebooks. It will count as a homework score for science. And every one of you whose parents post a comment will get a point extra credit. Please show your parents all the hard work and real science I have been doing (plus all the ways I'm sharing it with you).

I will post again soon with more pictures. This video posted really quickly which makes me happy (usually it takes hours!). I had a great conference with Miss Robitaille's class and look forward to our on Monday.

PS- So, where we are staying tomorrow night, the folks from the TV show the Ghost Hunter has visited. Apparently, on the third floor, is a ghost who levitated (that means lifted) a bed with a couple in it awhile ago. Also, a cup and saucer have moved on their own (!) in the dining room. The man from the Ghost Hunter sensed the ghost's presence, and they will film a show there soon. I don't think I believe it, but I will be looking around, using my observation skills on Halloween night when I sleep there!!