Ideas for integrating science

The Chautauqua grounds were developed on the shores of Lake Madison, a glacial lake in Easter South Dakota.  The surrounding area was prairie grass lands.  The Chautauqua site offers many opportunities for studying the natural prairies.

South Dakota Content Standards addressed include:

• understand basic structures and their functions in common plants
• describe behavioral and structural adaptations plants and animals make to survive in a given environment
• describe various influences human activity can have on ecosystems.
• describe important South Dakota natural resources.

Prairie Trees    Picture of Chautauqua Grounds around 1900 The developers of the Lake Madison Chautauqua understood the importance of trees.  During the first year, they planted over 2500 trees on the Chautauqua grounds.  Research these sites to learn more about the importance of trees and their age.
American Forests   Tree Help  Dendrochronology  Comparing Tree Rings  Note:  There are teacher and student activities on the first two sites.	Picture of tree planted at the Chautauqua grounds as it looks today.

Guiding Questions

1. How do trees contribute to the environment and to the culture of the people?

2. How do trees help control air pollution?

3. What is the global releaf project?

4. What are the major parts of a tree?

5. The early pioneers planted many cottonwood trees.  Why was the cottonwood tree a good choice?

6. Another tree that was often planted by lake shores was the willow?  Was this a good choice?

7. If you were going to plant a tree in your school yard, what type would you plant and why?

8. How can you tell the age of trees?

9. How many rings would a tree have that was planted at the Lake Madison Chautauqua grounds in 1895?

10. What causes the differences in the width of the tree rings? 

Answers

• Use the Climate Change Calculator to figure how many trees your class needs to keep its air clean.

Big Trees

Go to the National Register of Big Trees and check out the tallest and biggest circumference trees.  Do you have any in your neighborhood that could match or beat them?  To measure the circumference, have the students use a piece of string to go around the tree and then measure the string.  To estimate the height, take a picture of the tree with a child standing beside it.  Use the child as the unit of measure.  

If the child is 4', then the tree is approximately 12'.	If this child is 4', then this tree is approximately 24'.
To get a more accurate measurement,  hold a meter or yard stick upright and measure it's shadow.  Then, measure the shadow of the tree.

x/y = t/s	So, the height of the tree = s(x/y)
	Example:  if x = 3' and y = 1 1/2 ', and the shadow of the tree = 10', then the height of the tree is 20'
	t = 10(3 / 1 1/2) t = 10 (2) t = 20'

Glacial Lakes

What do the glaciers have to do with the Lake Madison Chautauqua?  Well,  Lake Madison is part of the Prairie Coteau region of eastern South Dakota.  It is part of a string of glacial lakes that are the heritage of at least three glaciers which covered eastern South Dakota.  The last of these receded about 10,000 years ago.  

Use these sites to research how the glaciers helped form the prairie lakes in South Dakota and how those lakes are enjoyed today.

• Glaciers and Glaciations   

• All About Glaciers (look at the glacier story slide show!)

• Glacial Lake Area Today 

• Benefits of the Ice Age 

Original trees planted on the Chautauqua grounds	Those trees today

Field Guide to the Prairie

The prairie is one of North America's great ecosystems and a vital habitat for many plants and animals. The prairie once spread across 1.5 million square kilometers of the Great Plains.  These sites will help students understand and appreciate the great prairies of the upper Midwest.  Both of these sites have excellent resources for teachers and students. 

• On the Prairie

• Exploring the Prairie

Want to find out about South Dakota's grasslands?  Check out find a forest or grassland at the USDA Forest Service site.