American Field Guide

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• Learn more about astronomy, biology, ecology, environmental science, geology, marine biology, meteorology, natural history, oceanography, and wildlife.

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PBS brings together material from the vast resources of local member stations to create the American Field Guide. In this online collection of over 1400 videos explore many aspects of the American wilderness:

• Animals
• Ecosystems
• Human History
• Livelihoods
• Earth & Space
• Plants
• Public Policy
• Recreation

These videos may be searched using keywords, topics, or states. Or browse the collection through subtopics of the above categories.

American Field Guide provides access to the American outdoors from the comfort of your classroom. Produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting and the Public Broadcasting Network, the American Field Guide site provides access to video programs (RealMedia or WindowsMedia required) from PBS television over the Internet. Turn your students into scientists, gathering data from observation and using inquiry to make the connections between the science and the real world! This site is cross disciplinary, combining science with human history, human and economic impact, career development, and public policy. Units of Inquiry include information skills, writing across the curriculum and computer skills in addition to the science content. For example, the unit, Mammals includes a section about animal behavior that integrates data collection and journal activities as well as research methods. The on-demand format allows users to view an area of the American outdoors whenever they choose, not only when the program is broadcast. All video includes a full transcript that is searchable, so students can move through the video to just the part they need. The ability to choose the segments and navigate according to interest allows users to construct their own exploration based upon what they want to know. This experience is much more student-centered and interactive than watching a video! One thousand four hundred video clips categorized by subject allow students to browse in an area of interest or search for a specific topic. Searches are queries on the entire transcript of the video, so results are very specific. Teacher resources for secondary students would be useful for Earth Science, Environmental Science, Biology and related disciplines. Units of Inquiry currently available are Birds, Floods, Fossils, Landfills, Mammals, Native Species Restoration, Non-Native Species, Ocean Habitats, National Parks and Wilderness — Public Policy, the Rock Cycle, Salmon vs. Dams and Volcanoes. Inquiry activities include writing assignments, problem solving, data gathering and analysis, and discussion questions. All activities are correlated to National Education Standards. (Handouts and printable format lesson plans are in .pdf format, Adobe Acrobat Reader required) Related websites enhance the units.