Hello! I’m David Valenzuela, I have a passion for conserving our environment and exchanging knowledge. Recently I graduated from California State University Monterey Bay with a major in environmental studies with a concentration in environmental education. Throughout my education, I was only taught that if I recycled, I would be the greenest person in the world. In college I found out that there was more to be done to education others about the environment and to spread awareness.
Getting hired during the pandemic was very interesting. There was a moment when I was not sure if this job was actually going to happen, due to the changing regulations about in-person programs on campuses. In the process of getting hired, I had a lot of hope for the program and was especially excited to have some in-person interactions with students.
Working in a small cohort class was great! I got to connect with all the students and build trust with my student group. This was the most rewarding part of the program. Adventuring outside and doing outdoor education with students before they went back to school gave them the courage to talk with one another. The timid students opened up and were not afraid to share their thoughts, comments, or questions. I was expecting all of the students to participate at the beginning of the program, but it took time for them to gain more confidence and trust each other. By the end of the program, all of the students were sharing their knowledge and collaborating with each other.
Hello, my name is Shannon Conner! For many years I have thought about taking a leap from informal museum education to teaching outdoors. I have many fond memories of outdoor programs I was involved in growing up in Southern California. Most of these memories include my Girl Scout troop and the lifelong friends I made during a time where I built a foundation of environmental knowledge and a desire to spend more time outdoors.
As I prepared to start my new job and career switch, I found myself preparing to expect the unexpected. I was incredibly excited to meet the students I would be working with for the next few months, but I also knew that we were still in the midst of a global health crisis and things are constantly changing, and I had to be prepared for that constant change to continue.
I will never forget the feelings I had as I observed what happened my first day on campus with these students. They walked out of their classroom to stand on chalk dots on the ground that were marked precisely 10 feet apart (the initial guideline for social distance the school set forth, more conservative than the 6 feet commonly accepted). I asked them to share their name and another describing word that went with it - I was Shannon Shell. The response I got was shocking - these kids had been basically locked in their houses for the past year and were so scared to speak, I couldn’t even hear most of their names as we went around the circle. I expected the first day to be hard, but I did not expect them to be so silent. It was like pulling teeth to get them to speak as they walked in straight lines with at least four adults watching them and yelling at them to keep social distance as they travelled from their classroom to the lunch tables, where they sat two per table at opposite ends, and any other place on campus.
Throughout the course of Bird School’s program, I worked with the administrative staff at the middle school to let the kids walk in more of a blob as they moved throughout campus so they could chat with myself or others around. I learned quickly that being the “awkward middle school age,” paired with schools being shut down for a year and now having to learn new rules on how to be near others was more difficult than I expected. I spent so much time the first few weeks just trying to validate the experiences we have had over the past year. I shared with them how awkward I felt having to stay at least six feet from everyone when I was used to kneeling and getting close to someone to make a connection. I shared that these skills were difficult for me to remember, and I didn’t blame them for having a hard time with it. I even gave them permission to call me out when I came within six feet of others as well. Reflecting back on the first few weeks of our small cohorts and comparing them to the kids we saw “graduate” back to hybrid learning, I know we made a huge difference for these kids. Some just needed someone to talk to other than their families, others needing a safe place to work on schoolwork and all of them needed more time outdoors away from screens. I am excited to see how these kids transition back to in-person learning, and if any of their new-found sense of wonder translates to other kids around them.
My name is Laura Vivanco and I am in my last semester at California State University of Monterey Bay. I am studying for a major in Environmental Studies, with a focus in education, and a minor in Japanese Language and Culture.
When I got hired to work for this program, I was ecstatic. I already had another job at the time, but when I found out that Bird School was hiring and that I got an interview, it was like a ray of light shining down on me.
In middle school, I got to experience an after school program similar to Bird School, except it is focused on the wetlands in Watsonville. Then, in high school I got to be a part of that same program as a teacher. I have always had an interest in being outdoors. I loved to play outside with my friends that I grew up with. Having experiences where nature was our classroom was far better than being “stuck” indoors for what seemed to be most of our days. Personally, it can be hard for me to stay focused in rooms where I am just sitting and listening, but when I am doing something with my hands, interacting with others and doing fun outdoor activities, they definitely tend to stick with me in a more positive light and for a much longer time.
My name is Jess, I love birding and exploring environmental education with middle school students! I started as an intern with Bird School in 2019 then I got hired as an instructor. Several months into the pandemic, I helped transition our curriculum to distance learning, facilitated a small cohort of students in Salinas, and now that most students are back on campus the team and I have been working with students after school. There has been a lot of changes to our scheduled programs over the pandemic, but through all the shifts weʼve adapted and have created a positive working relationship with the students and staff at El Sausal and Washington Middle School.
Since late February 2021 we worked with small cohorts of 10-12 students in 15 minute chunks on their schoolyard, doing speed rounds of journaling, gardening, birding, and social emotional learning. This was very fast but also fun, and I know most days the students just appreciated spending time outside. My cohort consisted of several students that were learning English. Although I consider myself fluent in Spanish, I had never taught in Spanish so it was a big learning curve and gave me a huge insight on my position as an instructor. As I translated my instruction I found myself stumbling on my words and trying to find the correct translations. An instructorʼs skills are only as strong as their willingness to reflect, grow, and change. So thatʼs what I did. I took more time to prepare, practiced my Spanish, talked to my students, and at times theyʼd help me with words I mistranslated. It was great because my students got to share their expert knowledge with me while I shared my expert knowledge with them.
When we started working with students after school I could really see the impact the small cohort program had on our groups. More than half of the students we work with after school participated in the cohorts. I think the small cohort program significantly benefitted our students. Theyʼre so much more outgoing, excited about nature, and even excited about participating. This was an extremely pleasant surprise for me! Not too long ago my teammate and I were talking to a staff member and they mentioned that as one student was walking in to school, they told them, “Iʼm only here to see birds after school” which made me think, “Well at least Bird School can be a motivation for them to come to their classes.”
Some of the students in our groups have gotten so familiar with the birds on the campus that they name them as they see the birds passing. Based on the conversations Iʼve had with students, it seems like many of the students in our group have improved academically. I feel really proud of our groups!
