Amazing Mammals
What do pine martin, deer, porcupine, black bear and coyotes have in common? They are all amazing local animals! Each one of them plays a special role in the local ecosystem web of life. Explore their special adaptations as you examine their skulls and bones.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3
Bear Smart
Get bear Smart this spring with an entertaining, hands-on program that focuses on bear ecology and safety. Explore real pelts and skulls while learning the basic biology and natural habits of these great creatures. Your class will learn about the management of bear attractants and how to avoid bear encounters. This program is sponsored by the South Okanagan Similkameen Bear Smart Project and is FREE for all classes.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Bully Plants: Let’s Weed Them Out
Learn about and understand the environmental impacts of invasive plants or “weeds” on natural habitats and agricultural areas in our region. This program encourages creative and scientific thought using props and interactive activities. This program is sponsored by the South Okanagan Similkameen Invasive Plant Society and the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen and is FREE for all classes.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Climate Change Showdown
Students will learn about climate change and greenhouse gases through this interactive presentation that includes a fun introductory video and questionnaire, followed by a climate change board game. Students are invited to share their own ideas and learn about new ways to take action on climate change. There is a take home challenge with different actions, and students can enter individually and as an entire class for great prizes!
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 5, Grade 6
Curator Kid Program
The Penticton Museum features a new Natural History gallery with school & family programs related to:
- ‘Fritz & Friends’ (explore our new live amphibarium with rare frogs, salamanders & turtles)
- ‘Rocking Around the Okanagan’ (Geology programs)
- ‘Dem Bones’ (Paleontology programs)
- ‘Species of the Okanagan’ (flora & fauna of the Okanagan)
- ‘Ecozones’ (Habitats of the Okanagan)
- ‘Living Larder’ (First Nation life on the land)
For booking, please book directly through OSCA.
For more info on the Curator Kid Program contact:
785 Main St, Penticton, BC V2A 5E3
Office Tel: (250) 490-2451
Fax: (250) 490-2442
http://www.pentictonmuseum.com
Program Type: In Community
Suitability: Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Eat Dirt!
Composting comes to the classroom with an interactive worm composting program. Students learn about the composting process, why it is important, characteristics of red wrigglers and the relationship between worms and soil. This program is provided by the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen and is FREE for all classes.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Eating Like a Bird
Bird bills (beaks) are like specialized tools which help them get the best meal. Students will learn how different birds eat and what they feed on as they explore a number of interactive stations. Play hide and go “seed” and practice cracking open your own seeds like a feeder bird. Find out what happens when birds eat bad things that should not be a part of their diet.
Held at Sun-Oka Park
Program Type: In Nature
Suitability: Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6
Greenhouse Gas Game
Learn how your daily activities can increase the amount greenhouse gases in the atmosphere leading to climate change. This program will help students connect how individual and collective choices and activities can have a positive or negative impact on climate change, and how they can make easy lifestyle changes to reduce their emissions. The life-sized board game provides an interactive learning experience for the entire class.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 3, Grade 4
Habitat Safari
Triple your fun as you explore three unique Okanagan habitats! Your class will roam the grassland benches, marvel at rocky terrain and investigate riparian habitat in this informative program. Discuss the connections between the different habitats and how they are interdependent. Learn about the unique and endangered wildlife that depend upon these habitats and find out ways in which their habitats can be saved.
Held at Vaseux Lake.
Program Type: In Nature
Suitability: Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Interesting Insects
Did you know that we share this valley with preying mantis, tarantula wasps and ticks? Learn about the basic biology, habits and importance of insects in this informative and fun program. This program feature lots of visual props to examine. Find out if spiders are insects too…
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2
It’s Not Easy Being Green!
Making a living as an amphibian has always been a challenge in the South Okanagan, and it’s getting tougher day-by-day! This entertaining and highly interactive program is perfect for students who want to explore what it takes to survive and thrive as a frog, toad or salamander in our shared and ever-changing landscape. This active program is perfect for open classroom settings or gymnasiums
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Lunch Waste Audit
Students will analyze their lunches to determine how much garbage they have and then problem solve ways in which they could decrease the amount of waste. Students will learn about the 3 R’s, what recycled materials are made into and participate in a fun game show format quiz. This program is provided by the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen and is FREE for all classes.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 4, Grade 5
Meet the Antelope 8 Gang
Have you ever heard of Antelope Brush? Well, the Antelope 8 (a motley mix of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians) sure has! They will tell you the reasons why they depend upon the important antelope brush habitat which is a distinguishing feature of the unique ecosystem of the Okanagan Similkameen. Learn about the endangered or threatened status of these animals, human impacts and stewardship initiatives.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Okanagan Knowledge
Understand the Okanagan First Nation’s view of the land as you take a tour of the beautiful and diverse locatee lands on the Penticton Reserve with a Syilx Knowledge Specialist. Your class will learn to recognize the plants and animals that live in this incredible area and will be introduced to the important cultural system of traditional ecological knowledge. This area is home to one of the last remaining old growth Cottonwood stands in the valley. Learn why it is so critical to protect the unique habitats of the South Okanagan Similkameen.
Held in Penticton at ECOmmunity Place
Program Type: In Nature
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Owls of Canada
Whooo are the owls that range this country? Whooo are the owls that live in the Okanagan? Learn about the unique lifestyles, habits and adaptations that make owls such amazing nocturnal predators. Find out why many local owl species are threatened or endangered, and learn what we can do to recover their declining populations.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Snakes of the South Okanagan Similkameen
The South Okanagan Similkameen is home to seven species of snakes! Learn to recognize these different species by examining their shed skins. Explore some of the ways these creatures lead their limbless lives via their habits and habitat. Learn some simple steps you can take to avoid the one species that is poisonous.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Spring Has Sprung!
Experience the wonder of plants and wildlife as they awaken to spring! This interactive program will lead students on a sensory exploration of the sights, sounds and smells of spring. Learn how to identify some of the common native plants and flowers, trees and birds that live in the Okanagan. Participate in a fun, non-competitive “unnature hunt” to challenge the powers of observation.
Program Type: In Nature
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2
Trees Wanted: Dead or Alive
Within a forest, we find trees at different stages of growth and decay. A wildlife tree is any standing tree, whether it is dead or living, with special characteristics that provide important habitat for wildlife. Many animals, including endangered species, need these wildlife trees for food, shelter and nesting. Find out why these trees are so important, who uses them and learn more about the forest food web. Both indoor and outdoor programs are available. Program offered FREE of charge.
Program Type: In Nature
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
Water: The Myth of Abundance
Water appears to be abundant in our region, however every drop we use must come from somewhere with a consequence on community growth and the environment. Water use within the Okanagan Water Basin competes with wildlife, fish, agriculture and people. Once we identify methods to reduce water waste, we realize “I don’t have to do without to be Water Smart”. This series of presentations is a companion to the “Okanagan Basin Waterscape Poster” and the accompanying teacher’s guide. Class discussion and exercises focus on using water wisely. This program is offered through the City of Penticton and is FREE to all classes.
Program and materials available in French.
Please note: Available within Penticton city limits only.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
What’s the Buzz?
Tell me what’s happening inside those big white bee hives! Biologists and beekeepers Janelle and Kevin explain the fascinating world of bees. Learn the importance of these insect pollinators and honey producers. Taste fresh local honey, try on a beesuit, and get a close look at live bees behind glass. Topics include insect ecology and biology, metamorphosis, social structure of a hive, beehive products and agricultural significance.
Program Type: In Class
Suitability: Kindergarten, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8
