Who is eligible?

Any school is eligible for an OWLS grant. A teacher or administrator of a school may fill out this application and send it to the address listed at the bottom of the application web page. Priority will be given to schools that can create or use existing wet areas such as a small pool, stream, pond or marsh. Additionally, emphasis will be given to OWLS which have several cooperating agencies or organizations and opportunities for other school or institutional uses.

Why do we need OWLS?

Each new generation eventually assumes responsibility for our environment. To help prepare children, it is necessary to emphasize educational programs that deal with ecology and wildlife. It is well established that "hands on" activities greatly enhance a student's ability to understand concepts and facts. One of the best ways to accommodate this is to provide natural environments at or near school property. Outdoor learning laboratories have been developed and used successfully for years by some schools. OWLS is designed to help stimulate more learning.

OWLS Features

An OWLS can be as simple as a few demonstration plots of native grasses and wildflowers and a small frog pool along an edge of the schoolgrounds, or as complex as several acres of woodlands with ponds and a stream. Features may include butterfly/hummingbird gardens, wetlands, nature trails, bird and other animal feeding stations, native prairie grass demonstration and study plots, xeriscape demonstration sites and weather stations. Most OWLS will have some trees and shrubs specifically selected to attract certain wildlife species, such as songbirds.

Outdoor Wildlife Learning Sites (OWLS) Brochure

OWLS School Committee

As soon as you can, organize an OWLS committee for your school. This group should be composed of, at minimum, two teachers, one administrator, one maintenance person, two students and one parent. The first business this committee should do is to select a project director. The project director will be in charge of sending the proposal to the OWLS coordinator when it is ready. The OWLS committee is the engine behind each OWLS area and will be the guiding organization for not only preparation of the OWLS proposal but also the soliciting of community involvement and support. For technical assistance, the OWLS committee should identify local natural resource professionals, such as the district biologist for KDWP, the district conservationist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the county extension agent, and others.

OWLS Procedures

• Download the OWLS Guidelines for the KDWP website.
• School forms an OWLS committee and selects an OWLS project director.
• Project director contacts KDWP district biologist for guidance.
• School OWLS committee prepares grant proposal with assistance of district biologist and other resource persons.
• Project director sends grant proposal to OWLS coordinator for review.
• OWLS coordinator forwards proposal to OWLS office or returns proposal to project director for further refinement. OWLS office approves proposal.
• Grant contract is sent to project director.
• Project director returns signed grant contract to OWLS office.
• Check is sent to school.
• School begins project work.

OWLS Area Possibilities

Each site may be customized to the available landscape and designed to achieve specific learning objectives. OWLS areas may range from a small plot of native shrubs and prairie, with a small pool in a corner of the school yard, to sites that feature several of the following possibilities:

• Feeding stations for birds, squirrels, etc.
• Shrubs that represent woody songbird plantings.
• Butterfly and/or hummingbird gardens.
• Stands of native prairie managed by prescribed burning or mowing.
• Woody plantings that include trees and shrubs to be used as nesting, cover, food, and perching sites (may be associated with feeding stations).
• Nesting structures for songbirds, geese, and small mammals.
• Trails through woodland and prairie sites.
• Water: a lined pond, ground level tank, or developed wetland incorporating wetland plant species.

Additional Considerations and Options

• Use native plants whenever possible.
• Incorporate xeriscaping concepts to reduce demands on water and other natural resources, and to help foster a stronger concern for water conservation in Kansas.
• Incorporate feeding stations to bring wildlife into view where they can be identified, observed, counted and recorded.
• Use bird nesting boxes to observe behavior and reproductive activities.
• Utilize brush piles to provide cover and nesting sites for wildlife.
• Consider weather stations to help correlate weather to habitat conditions and animal behavior.
• Construct an area with animal tracks pressed into clay or cement to help students learn to find and identify tracks in the wild.
• Incorporate trails and interpretive signs to offer students a chance to learn about wildlife by preparing material.
• Consider time capsules to relate current wildlife issues to future students.
• Consider fencing, if needed, to ensure protection of the site.
• Include teachers, administrators, maintenance staff, students, parents, and community resource people in the planning, implementation, and maintenance of the site and development of learning activities.
• Apply learning activities that are site-specific and encompass many disciplines, such as science, math, art, writing, and social sciences.
• Utilize or modify site activities from KDWP Wildlife Education Service (WES) learning activities and from programs such as Project Learning Tree (PLT), Project WILD (PW), and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) activities, along with those offered through the Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE), Project WET (WET), and various other workshops.
• Establish a Wildlife Reference Center (WRC) in the school to house WES and other curricular materials, field and lab equipment, texts, references, field guides, etc.

Bird and Squirrel Feeding Stations

Even school yards with severely limited space have areas where feeding stations can be integrated. Feeders are an excellent way to bring birds and squirrels into view and involve students with wildlife by visual contact. These can incorporated into new learning sites on the school grounds or into existing shrubs and trees near the building.

Hint: Maintain a feeder effectively; adopt it to an appointed classroom or grade. Depending on the number of feeders, a classroom may maintain the entire station or a single feeder, or feeder maintenance may be rotated among grades or classrooms.

Establish a School Wildlife Resource Center

A Wildlife Resource Center (WRC) should be established within the school. This should house curricular materials, field manuals, maintenance equipment, lab equipment, texts, references, etc. The following is a list of books and materials that might be included in your WRC. In order to acquire Project WILD, Project Learning Tree, Project WET, and Leopold Education Project curricular materials you must contact Kansas Association for Environmental Education. These are outstanding experiences and we highly recommend that you participate in them.

The Kansas Earth Partnership for Schools (KS EPS) curriculum (developed by UW-Madison Arboretum) has more than 100 activities related to the background research, preparation, implementation, maintenance, and follow-up study of schoolyard prairie gardens for K-12 schools and many of them are correlated to the adopted national standards of Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and Common Core. The curriculum is free who take the 40-hour course.

Equipment

• Magnifying glasses
• Binoculars
• Microscopes
• Cameras
• Butterfly nets
• Dip nets
• Water analysis kits
• Sweep nets
• Soil analysis kits
• String and stakes for transects

Curriculum Materials

• Nature's Notebook, WES KDWP
• Lower Primary Teacher's Guide, WES KDWP
• Upper Primary Teacher's Guide, WES KDWP
• Wildlife Reference Center Catalog, WES KDWP (Update 2002)
• Something WILD - Animal Resource Booklet with Illustrations.
• Project WILD
• Project WILD Aquatic
• Project Learning Tree
• Kansas Earth Partnership for Schools at Dyck Arboretum of the Plains

Most of these resource materials are free, but you must participate in a workshop to receive the Project Wild guides.

KDWP Wildlife Resource Library

The Wildlife Resource Library of KDWP has an extensive collection of references, audiovisual materials, and kits that may be checked out. Reach out via mail or email for a free catalog at the address below.

Wildlife Resource Library
KDWP 512 SE 25th Ave.
Pratt KS 67124
Phone: (620) 672-5911
shelby.stevens@ks.gov

Establish Community Resources and Support Groups

In addition to the OWLS committee, your project will benefit from the participation of an extended group of adults in the community who can serve as a support group. Such people may serve on the OWLS committee. They can attend meetings, meet with students in class, and assist on the site by providing knowledge, funds, materials, and even physical labor. Such individuals will be important resources and allies! They should be part of the technical support group. Here are a few example of people who can help.

Environment Professionals

They include representatives of forestry, wildlife, and soil conservation agencies; extension agents; state department of education curriculum consultants; land planners; and landscape architects or designers. Such people should be involved in initial planning stages. They can also assist when new projects are considered or existing projects expanded. These people will provide a wealth of valuable technical assistance and expertise. Your KDWPT district biologist is an excellent and helpful source of information and ideas.

Local Businesses

Many businesses today are looking for ways to foster community pride and involvement. Such relationships can provide you with a variety of materials and services. Committee members and students could personally visit several business establishments and determine to what degree they could provide materials or technical assistance to the OWLS project. Remember that some businesses may prefer to give materials and labor rather then dollars. Be resourceful and cooperative.

Habitat Improvement

Habitat improvement is community involvement. Ideas the public sees working successfully on the school grounds might inspire additional improvements in the community. Don't be limited by these ideas. Brainstorm with your students and committee members. Start with your needs and think of who might be able to help.

Examples:

• Nursery: trees, shrubs, other plants
• Hardware Store: shovels, hand trowels, rakes
• Garden Shop/Feed Store: seeds, bird seed for feeders
• Lumber Company: scraps to build bird feeders, houses, and other shelters
• Utility Company: wood chips for trails and walks, poles for posts and trail borders
• Concrete Company: sand and cement for a wildlife tracking area
• Office Supply Store: paper for OWLS newsletter
• Landscape Company: soil, plants, rocks, design assistance