Daniel Fitzsimmons Cruz's ID Portfolio Page
Navigation links: ETAP 623 Fall 2024 | Fitzsimmons Cruz Mini Course: Animals of New York
About Me
Hello, my name is Daniel Fitzsimmons Cruz. I have an MA in History and an MS in Information Science. I am currently working on my Ph.D. in History. I previously worked at the NYS Library for three years and have worked at the NYS Museum for the past two and a half years.
I am passionate about all things NYS. I love traveling across the state and seeing all the cool natural sites and historic parks we have. I also love the NBA team the NY Knicks. My dream is that they win another NBA Championship. It has been over 50 years since our last one. It has to happen soon, right?
My Topic and Purpose
My mini-course is about Animals in New York State. New York State is one of the most diverse places on the planet. That includes our animals. New York State is home to a wide variety of animals that live on both the land and the sea. This mini-course will look at some of the various animals that used to and still do call New York State home.
I chose this topic because I wanted to do something a little different than I am used to. I have always been deathly afraid of math and science, which is how I ended up in the humanities. I am pretty good when it comes to doing history-based programs. Still, at my job, we have a lot of science exhibits and collections that tend to be very popular with visiting school groups. Since I am not very familiar with them, I wanted to try and get used to working with science-based artifacts.
Scope of Learning Outcomes and Content
- Identify and describe various animals.
- Understand the variety of animal species in New York State.
- Explain how environmental change impacts animals in NYS.
- Utilize knowledge gained to better understand environmental practices.
Needs Assessment
- The educational problem or opportunity: A large portion of the museum's visitors are from Albany or New York City. Due to a variety of reasons, these students do not have the opportunity to experience the various natural landscapes of New York State. This program can provide insight into the different creatures found across our great state.
- The learners/participants involved: Students, typically in fourth or fifth grade.
- Analysis of gaps: Many students have not been exposed to a wide variety of animals. Information on them can provide a better understanding of the natural world, the need for environmental protection, and possible prevention methods if a student ever encounters one of these animals.
- Intent statement: Through class discussion, group projects, and hands-on activities, students will be better able to recognize the different features and traits of various New York State animals. Students will build on the knowledge they already have and develop further skills when it comes to identifying the environments these animals live in and the environmental steps necessary to preserve spaces in New York State where these animals can continue to thrive.
Analysis of the Learner and Context
The typical learner for this course would be a fourth or fifth-grade student. These are the two most common school groups that come into the museum, especially the ones interested in science programs related to animals. Since most schools mandate a fourth-grade field trip, there is a wide variety of students who come to the museum. These can be students as far away as areas near Buffalo or the Southern tier to students all the way from Clinton County by the Canadian border. A sizeable amount of students come from the Albany area. This is primarily because the State Museum is in Albany and easy to get to for these schools. However, another large group of students comes from New York City. This is due to the sheer size of the city and its massive school district.
Since most of the students who come to the museum are from more urban or suburban areas, many do not have the same exposure to the outdoors that students from the Adirondacks might have. Many of them come in with very limited levels of knowledge related to New York State animals both past and present. This is especially true of extinct New York State animals. For example, most students from all areas of New York State do not know that New York State was underwater during the dinosaur period or that there is a difference between a mastodon and a woolly mammoth.
For the students that come from urban areas such as New York City, many of them come in with even less knowledge than a suburban student. Part of this is due to financial and cultural differences. Many of these students do not have the financial flexibility to take trips to other areas of the state. Additionally, many cultures have various rules and customs when it comes to interacting with certain animals or believing in things like evolution. Each of these can present a problem when it comes to designing a program they would be interested in. However, there are enough animals and time periods to talk about that it rarely is an issue. Most students are simply excited to see taxidermized animals and get to touch real fur.
The mini-course is designed to be taught in the museum itself when students come for field trips. However, there are various teaching carts that the museum has available for transportation, so the course could also be done in a traditional classroom setting. Due to this, all material used in the program will either be online or provided by the museum. Typically, since these programs are done for students visiting on field trips, they would only be done in a day. However, I am designing this mini-course to include a variety of one-off programs that all relate to each other and can be done over the course of two weeks.
Performance-Based Learning Objectives
After completing this mini-course, learners will be able to,
- Identify and describe various animals.
- Understand the variety of animal species in New York State.
- Utilize knowledge gained to better understand environmental practices.
Task and Content Analysis
Before taking this course, the learner:
- Should have a basic understanding of what defines a mammal, fish and bird. (Pre-requisite.)
- Should have a basic understanding of environmental change and what this looks like over time. (Pre-requisite.)
- Must be actively looking to develop their understanding of the topic. (Pre-requisite.)
Unit 1: New York and the Ice Age
After this unit, student will be able to:
- Understand the Ice Age and its impact on New York State.
- Name and describe the four major biomes of New York State.
- Identify the difference between the Mastodon and a Woolly Mammoth
Unit 2: Aquatic Animals of New York State
After this unit, students will be able to:
- Describe the significance of New York State waterways for animals.
- Describe the different types of freshwater biomes.
- Describe the differences between freshwater and saltwater animals.
- Understand the impact of water resources during early colonial development.
After this unit, student will be able to:
- Describe the different habitats birds live in.
- Describe the process of migration.
- Understand the impact of pollution on bird populations.
Unit 4: Land Mammals of New York
After this unit, student will be able to:
- Understand the physical differences between predators and prey.
- Identify the different diets for predator and prey land mammals.
- Describe the impact of humans on habitats.
- Describe the impacts of overhunting related to beavers.
Curriculum Map
