Wading Into Wetlands

Wading Into Wetlands is an excellent resource for teachers of any grade who would like to introduce the importance of Wetlands Habitats. This is part of the Ranger Rick Nature Scope series and the National Wildlife Federation. Each chapter (What Makes A Wetland; Saltwater Wetlands; Freshwater Wetlands; Wetlands, Wildlife and Peoples; and Crafts) is has complete adaptations for Primary (K-2), Intermediate (3-5) and Junior High (6-7) students. The book addresses all of the seven intelligences: it has opportunities to learn songs, build models, illustrate concepts, research projects, utilize mapping techniques, and more. I am using it with my third grade class. Each child is researching a different wetland bird and making a scale model of it for our wetlands bulletin board, along with a short report. They will find different insects, mollusks, invertebrates, fish, plants and animals to add during their research. Many of these are suggested in the Wading Into Wetlands book. We will build a mangrove habitat (Mail order: That Pet Place at 1-888-thatpet sells mangrove seedlings for $1.50 and we will plant some in fresh water and some in salt water to see the plant's adaptations to different water). We will visit a local small marshy area not too far from our school and explore the area. They will write to the President about how important it is to maintain wetlands areas for migratory birds. This book is a real find and I am using every page of it for my class. I highly recommend it.