Nature’s Notebook Advanced Training Workbook

Maricopa Cooperative Extension, October 7-8, 2016

Station #1: Practicing making observations outside

Materials: Printouts of datasheets (day by day) and definitions. Cover sheet and animal checklist.

Station #2: Nature’s Notebook Protocols and Intensity Quizzes

Materials: View the intensity quizzes online and answer the embedded questions (https://www.usanpn.org/nn/BotanyIntensityQuizzes)

1.  What were 3 things that are difficult about using or understanding the phenophase definitions?

2.  Why do some phenophase protocols have numbers and others have percentages?

3.  What resources would make species and phenophase identification easier? Where can you find them?

4.  What is one question you still have about identifying species and phenophases and their intensity?

Station #3: Questions on Botany Primer, How to Observe Handbook, FAQs, and Phenophase Primer (DRAFT)

Materials: One copy of each of the handbooks and access to the online FAQs and Nature’s Notebook Nuggets

1.  How are the methods for observing plants and animals in Nature’s Notebook different from each other?

2.  What is a representative site in Nature’s Notebook?

3.  How can one best mark one’s site and plants?

4.  What is patch monitoring, and why is it used?

5.  How often should I make observations?

6.  What phenophase is indicated when one sees cotyledons emerge above the soil surface, but true leaves are not yet emerged or unfolded?

7.  When does one stop reporting the phenophase breaking leaf buds?

8.  When does a flower become an “open flower”?

9.  When does one know that a pine has ripe seeds?

10.  What is the name of the phenophase in which male anthers release pollen grains?

11.  At what point would you report “Breaking leaf buds” on a tree or shrub? What must be exposed?

12.  What is a mixed bud?

13.  How long do you continue reporting YES to the ‘Flowers or Flower Buds’ phase?

14.  How do you know if your plant has dormant winter buds, and when do you begin reporting yes to ‘Breaking leaf buds’?

15.  How do you judge what percentage of the canopy is full with colored leaves or needles?

16.  How are the phenophases ‘flowers or flower buds’, different from ‘open flowers’?

Station #4: Visualization Tool Demo

Materials: View the videos on the USA-NPN’s Visualization Tool Playlist on YouTube.

1.  What might you learn from the Visualization Tool? What stories could you tell or information might you present to visitors?

2.  Why might the calendar with the gray bars (“no” observations) be more valuable than the calendar without?

| Maricopa MG/PPT Nature’s Notebook Advanced Training