8/6/2019 Survey: Natural Area Appreciation at the University of Michigan-Dearborn

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Natural Area Appreciation QuestionnairePlease return this survey ASAP to: SaraCole

sscole@gmail.com Deadline: Monday, September 12The EIC will also accept the survey at their information desk in print.

The Rose Garden Pond and Natural Area have served as an educational setting for over 40 years. Theeducational value of natural areas is well documented, but wed love to know what makes our natural place inDearborn special to you!

On average, over 10,000 UMD, HFCC, and K-12 students learn in this unique outdoor classroom every

year. The Natural Area at University of Michigan Dearborn is a valuable asset for K-12 students, teachers,college students, children, families, and community members. The Natural Area is also ecologically important, too,serving as a home for a wide variety of insects, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and migrating birds. Plus, beinglocated upstream of the Detroit river, it helps clean the water that we drink from the municipal tap. This makes itvaluable for environmental scientists, ecologists, local governments, and sustainability researchers, especiallythose focused on studying the environment in urban settings.

If youre really stuck with writers block, think about how and where you used the natural area, how its valuable toyou or your community, and what was most memorable/valuable about being there. Perhaps you can discuss themwith someone to clear the cobwebs off of your memories. Weve included more prompts at the end of this surveyfor you to consider if this isnt enough. What one does is what counts. Not what one had the intention of doing.- Pablo

Picasso "Do or do not. There is no try." Yoda

The purpose of this questionnaire is to help understand what the Rose Garden Pond and Natural Area means to those who have used it. Yourresponses will help convey why it should be preserved and protected as an educational space.

Select responses will be turned into essays for inclusion in the document presented to the EIC in September. Responses can and may befeatured on the EIC website or used in future publications.

(Note: Please use complete sentences, feel free to sketch or include pictures too.)

1. What is your name?

2. What is your affiliation with the UMD Rose Garden Pond/Natural Area? How long have you beenaffiliated with it?

3. Describe your most meaningful experience that occurred in the Rose Garden Pond or Natural Area,whether it involved you directly or was something that you passively witnessed. (For example:Something you discovered, a program you led, a student you worked with, etc.)

Please continue to page 2!

mailto:sscole@gmail.commailto:sscole@gmail.com

8/6/2019 Survey: Natural Area Appreciation at the University of Michigan-Dearborn

2/2

Natural Area Appreciation QuestionnairePlease return this survey ASAP to: SaraCole

sscole@gmail.com Deadline: Monday, September 12The EIC will also accept the survey at their information desk in print.

4. In brief, describe why the Rose Garden Pond and Natural Area is important to you as a learner.What kind of concepts did you learn there? What can others learn when they visit the natural area?Be specific. (Tips: If you make a claim, try your best to cite a research study that supports yourclaim. It will make for a much stronger and more thoughtful statement.)

5. Optional: Attach a picture (e.g.: photo or drawing) that shows that the Rose Garden Pond means to you.Include an informative caption (e.g.: the location of the photo, the circumstances under which the photowas taken, what the picture represents).

Picture description/Caption:

If youre stuck with writers block, here are some optional prompts that can seed ideas for a growing response:

How and where did you use the natural area? Do you continue to use it/visit it? How is the Natural Area an asset to you, or the community?What was most memorable/valuable about being in the Natural Area?

Organizations, Students: What kind of projects have you done in the natural area? How have you used the natural area to promotesustainability, conservation, etc.? What did you learn?

For educators or those working with children at the Natural Area: What has the experience been like? What kinds of programs do you do there?What kinds of things do you teach about? How do you use the natural area to teach it?

The survey is completely finished? Please be sure to send it to Sara Cole by Sep. 12th, thank you!

mailto:sscole@gmail.commailto:sscole@gmail.com