beings. This can fortify their sense of compassion and connection with other forms of life.
• In each game’s highly charged peer-to-peer interaction, children learn how to coordinate quick strategic deci- sion-making with large motor movements – a good chal- lenge for their brains’ executive functions. Moreover, the games chasing format allows students to participate in significant physical exercise, especially when played out- side. In both game formats, youngsters can build stronger interpersonal skills as they learn to compete and cooper- ate within a rule-governed social structure. And young- sters are reinforcing and expanding their real-life social networks during these games. By entwining awareness of natural history and science with enjoyable social and physical activity, instruction of this kind can promote the assimilation of new information both intellectually and emotionally. Additionally, games of this sort are more respectful of collectivized youngsters’ developmental needs and proclivities than are other necessary but some- times aversive techniques such as classroom reading, passive video presentation, or worse yet – lectures.
• When games of this kind are part of a teaching program, even if students forget many of the precise details of the natural history scenarios, at least they retain a pleasant memory of running across fields with their peers in the fresh air. They’re not alienated from the educational enterprise, and by the end of class, they’re a little more physically fit and healthy just from having fun in the sunshine or under the clouds.
Edith Couchman teaches art and environmental science for the Beaver Brook Association in Hollis, New Hampshire, and at Maple Dene Elementary School in Pepperell, Mas- sachusetts.
References
Blaustein, A. and Bancroft, B., “Amphibian population declines: evolutionary considerations”, BioScience 57:5 May 2007, pp. 437-444.
Davidson, C., “Declining downwind: amphibian population declines in Cali- fornia and historical pesticide use”, Ecological Applications 1, 2004, pp.1892- 1902.
Diamond, A., (Radio interview conducted by Krista Tippet with Dr. Adele Diamond concerning learning, the arts, dramatic play, and the educational implications of recent research about brain development and function) <http://
being.publicradio.org/programs/2009/learning-doing-being>, Accessed December 16, 2010.
Elliot, L., Gerhardt, C. and Davidson, C. The Frogs and Toads of North America, Houghton Mifflin, 2009.
Lingelbach, J. and Purcell, L., Hands-On Nature, Vermont Institute of Natural Science, 2000.
Milius, S., “In field or backyard, frogsface threats”, Science News 178, 2010, p. 28.
Myers, P. et al., “The Animal Diversity Web”, <
http://animaldiversity.org>, Accessed December 18, 2010.
NASA Earth Observatory (July 8, 2002), “Deformed frogs form when parasites and pesticides combine”, <
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/view. php?id=22544>, Accessed December 16, 2010.
Project WILD, “Quick Frozen Critters” in Project Wild: K - 12 Curriculum and Activity Guide, Council for Environmental Education, 2002, pp. 122-123.
Rex E., “Amphibian skins: Could bacteria carried by amphibians save them from extinction?”, Scientific American, July 12, 2010, <
www.scientificameri-
can.com/article.cfm?id=skin-fight-bacteria-frogs>, Accessed September 19, 2010.
Tyning, T. F. A Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles, Little, Brown and Co., 1990.
University of California – Berkeley, “Pesticide atrazine can turn male frogs into females”, Science Daily, March 1, 2010, <
www.sciencedaily.com/ releases/2010/03/
100301151927.htm>, Accessed September 19, 2010.
Endnotes
1. Recordings of frog vocalizations can be found on-line at sites such as the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology’s Animal Diversity Web: <http://
animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/Topics/FrogCalls.html> or in printed sources such as the book and compact disc combination The Frogs and Toads of North America—see the References section of this article.
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