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Links/Resources
We hope that outdoor education doesn't stop upon departure from SJOE and we're working hard to help teachers further their own education and that of their students. On this page, you'll find a growing number of resources that can help you - let us know if you'd like to see something else up here or if you have questions!
Fundraising Suggestions
Outdoor School Vocabulary
Flora and Fauna of Outdoor School
Local History of Outdoor School
Websites
Books
Fundraising Ideas
Recycle Place: collect ink jet, laser and toner cartridges to recycle and raise money.
TerraCycle: collect soda bottles to raise money.
Outdoor School Vocabulary
Adaptation - a physical or behavioral characteristic which enables an organism to live and reproduce in its environment
Alternation of generations - alternation within a species of a sexually reproducing generation and an asexually reproducing generation. EX: moss
Asexual reproduction - reproduction that does not involve the union of sperm and egg
EX: fern, sea anemone
Camouflage - coloration or features which resemble an organism's environment such that it is less visible
Carnivore - an animal that exclusively eats meat. EX: coyote
Carrying Capacity - the total number of any species that a given habitat will support at any given time
Chlorophyll - green pigments in plants that absorb light energy necessary for photosynthesis
Competition - the struggle among organisms for food, water, shelter, space, and other requirements for survival
Community - a group of living organisms in a given area that interact with each other; the living component of an ecosystem
Consumer - an animal that eats plants (primary consumer) or other animals (secondary consumer). EX: rabbit (primary), hawk (secondary)
Crepuscular - active at dawn and/or dusk EX: deer
Deciduous - shedding leaves each year EX: maple, buckeye
Decomposer - an organism (mainly bacteria and fungi) which causes the mechanical and chemical breakdown of dead matter into simpler components EX: mushroom, banana slug
Diurnal - active during the day EX: squirrel
Ecology - the study of the interactions of organisms with each other and with their physical environment and of the results of such interactions
Ecosystem - a basic functional unit consisting of the interactions of organisms and their physical environment within a given area, ranging from a small meadow to the entire planet
Ectotherm (cold-blooded) - an organism with a body temperature that varies with that of the environment EX: amphibians, reptiles
Endotherm (warm-blooded) - an organism that regulates its body temperature internally through metabolic processes EX: birds, mammals
Environment - everything that surrounds an organism, including living and non-living matter
Evergreen - having leaves or needles all year round EX: some oaks, redwoods
Evolution - genetic changes within a species from one generation to the next as a consequence of processes such as natural selection
Food chain - the passage of energy (food) from producers to consumers
Food web - a network of interconnected food chains within a community
Habitat - the place in which individuals of a particular species live
Herbivore - an animal that exclusively eats plants EX: mouse
Hermaphrodite - an animal with both male and female sex organs EX: barnacle, banana slug
Interdependence - a relationship between two or more organisms in which the organisms are mutually dependent for survival
Invertebrate - an animal without a backbone EX: insects, most tidepool animals
Life Cycle - a series of stages in an organism's life including birth, growth, reproduction, and death
Metamorphosis - a process by which an immature animal transforms to an adult through a series of developmental stages
Natural selection - a process in nature by which organisms best adapted to their environment most commonly survive
Niche - the space in a community occupied by a given organism i.e. where it lives, where it gets its food, where it breeds
Nocturnal - active at night EX: owl
Nutrient cycle - the recycling of nutrients through the actions of producers, consumers, and decomposers
Nutrients - the building blocks of food
Omnivore - an animal that eats both plants and animals EX: raccoon
Organic - derived from living organisms
Organism - a living individual, plant, animal, or otherwise
Photosynthesis - the conversion of light energy (sunlight) to chemical energy (sugar) in plants using carbon dioxide and water in the presence of chlorophyll
Population - all individuals of one species living in a particular area
Predator- an animal that hunts, kills, and eats other animals
Prey - an animal that is hunted for food
Producer - an organism that produces its own food (plants)
Regeneration - the re-growth of a missing part or restoration of a new individual from part of the original EX: sea star
Scavenger - an animal which eats dead organic matter EX: vulture
Sexual reproduction - reproduction that involves sperm and egg EX: most animals
Species - a group of organisms that interbreed in nature and are reproductively isolated from all other such groups; a taxonomic grouping of morphologically similar individuals
Succession - a natural progression of changes in the environment which result in the transformation of habitats, such as meadow to forest
Taxonomy - the science of classifying organisms into groups which reflect their essential similarities and differences
Vertebrate - an animal with a backbone EX: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals
Water cycle - worldwide circulation of water molecules, powered by the sun, which involves evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and percolation
Common Flora and Fauna of the San Mateo Coast District
Plants Birds Mammals
Coastal Redwood
Stellar's Jay
Western
Grey Squirrel
Douglas Fir
Scrub
Jay
Chickaree
Squirrel
Monterey Pine
Red-tailed
Hawk
Merriam Chipmunk
California Buckeye
Turkey Vulture
Blacktail (Mule) Deer
Pacific Madrone
California Quail
Raccoon
Tan (Tanbark) Oak
Acorn Woodpecker
Brush Rabbit
Coast Live Oak
Hairy Woodpecker
Striped Skunk
California Laurel (Bay) Downy
Woodpecker
Spotted Skunk
Big Leaf Maple
Yellow-bellied
Sapsucker Bobcat
Coyote Brush
Great
Horned Owl
Coyote
California Blackberry
Western Screech Owl Opossum
Thimbleberry
American
Robin
Western Grey Fox
California Wild Lilac
Western Meadowlark Dusky-footed
Woodrat
Coffee Berry
Chestnut-backed
Chickadee Deer Mouse
Toyon
Oregon Junco
Broad-footed
Mole
Western Sword Fern
Anna's Humming bird Pocket
Gopher
Bracken Fern
Golden-crowned
Sparrow Badger
Coastal Wood Fern
Song Sparrow
Mountain
Lion
Five-finger Fern
Wrentit
Bats
Western Chain Fern
Varied Thrush
Goldenback Fern
Brown Creeper
Reptiles
and Amphibians
Horsetail
Warbling
Vireo
Redwood Sorrel
Yellow Warbler
Western Fence Lizard
Yerba Buena
Orange-crowned
Warbler (Blue-bellied Lizard)
Miner’s Lettuce
Rufous-sided Towhee Western
Skink Lizard
Poison Oak
Brown
Towhee
Southern Alligator
Lizard
Stinging Nettle
Western Flycatcher
Rubber Boa Snake
Trillium
Black-headed Grosbeak Western
Ringneck Snake
Forget-Me-Not
Brown-headed
Cowbird Sharp-tailed
Snake
Douglas Iris
Common
Crow
Racer
Snake
Buttercup
Common
Raven
Gopher
Snake
Blue-eyed Grass
Mourning Dove
Common
Kingsnake
Sticky Monkey Flower
Western Garter Snake
Poison Hemlock
Aquatic
Insects
Common
Garter Snake
Western Hound's Tongue
Backswimmer
Pacific Giant Salamander
Plants Aquatic Insects Reptiles and Amphibians
Fat Solomon’s Seal Western Boatman California Newt
Slim Solomon’s Seal Nymphs: Mayfly, California Slender
Turkey Mullein Dragonfly, Stonefly Salamander
Wood Violet Larvae: Caddisfly, Pacific Treefrog
Wood Strawberry Whirligig, Mosquito Red-legged Frog
Wood Rose Water Strider Yellow-legged Frog
Scarlet Columbine Leech
Bur Clover Scud
Bull Thistle Diving Beetle Banana Slug!!
Lichen Water Scavenger Beetle
Moss
Plants Birds Tidepool Animals
Salt Grass Western Gull Rock Louse
Yarrow California Gull California Mussel
Pickleweed Bonaparte’s Gull Mossy Chitin
Dodder Heeman’s Gull Gumboot Chitin
Coyote Brush Mallard Duck Black Turban Snail
Lupine Wood Duck Rough Limpet
Bush Lupine Canvasback Duck Keyhole Limpet
California Poppy Ruddy Duck Black Abalone
Cattails Cinnamon Teal Ochre Star
Tule Pintail Duck Bat Star
Pampas Grass Common Tern Sunflower Star
Wild Buckwheat Caspian Tern Brittle Star
Wild Radish Foster’s Tern Purple Urchin
Field Mustard American Coot Sea Cucumber
Dock Red Winged Blackbird Shore Crab
Poison Oak Long-billed Marsh Wren Kelp Crab
Stinging Nettle Double Crested Cormorant Porcelain Crab
Sand Verbena Brown Pelican Rock Crab
Ice Plant Great Blue Heron Hermit Crab
Sea Fig Great Egret Sand Crab
California Poppy Snowy Egret Acorn Barnacle
Buttercup Western Grebe Goose Barnacle
Douglas Iris Eared Grebe Aggregated Anemone
Sea Rocket Belted Kingfisher Giant Green Anemone
Wallflower Killdeer Tidepool Sculpin
Beach Strawberry Western Willet Eroded Periwinkle
Scotch Broom Marbled Godwit Sand Dollar
Beach Pea Long-billed Curlew Blenny Eel
Poison hemlock Black-bellied Plover Little White Tube Worm
Beach Primrose Black-necked Stilt Mussel Worm
Cow Parsnip American Bittern Sea Slugs
Beach Morning Glory American Avocet Two Spot Octopus
Fiddleneck Western Sandpiper
Plants Birds Marine Mammals
Indian Paint Brush Sanderling California Sea Lion
Gum Plant Dunlin Stellar (Northern) Sea Lion
Seaside Daisy Northern Harrier Northern Fur Seal
Thistle Red-tailed Hawk Harbor Seal
Vetch Kestrel Northern Elephant Seal
Wild Cucumber Turkey Vulture California Grey Whale
Pearly Everlasting Sparrow Hawk Sea Otter
Sweet Fennel Black-shouldered Kite
Brown Algae Bank Swallow
Shore Algae Barn Swallow
Sea Palm Cliff Swallow
Corallina House Finch
Ribbon Kelp American Goldfinch
Sea Lettuce Anna’s Hummingbird
Feather Boa Kelp Western Meadow lark
Whit-crowned Sparrow
Golden-crowned Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Local History of Outdoor School
To gain a proper perspective and understanding of this area, it is important to know at least a little of its background history, beginning several thousand years ago with the Ohlone Indians. Before the arrival of the Spaniards, central California had the densest population of Native Americans north of Mexico. In the coastal area alone, extending from San Francisco Bay to Point Sur, lived over 10,000 Native Americans comprising approximately forty different groups, each with its own territory and chief. Among these groups, eight to twelve different languages were spoken. The Spaniards called these people collectively "Costenos," which means "coast people." Over time, the name developed into the English version, "Costanoans." Neither name was acknowledged by the Native Americans; instead, they chose to be called "Ohlone," possibly a tribal word meaning "western people."
The Ohlone were never a tribe such as the Navajo or Sioux but were rather many tribelets loosely affiliated through trade and marriage. While each tribelet had a major village site, as hunters and gatherers, their lives consisted of a series of treks from one harvest to another: to the seashore for shellfish, to the rivers for salmon, to the marshes for ducks and geese, to the oak groves for acorns, to the hills for seeds, roots, and greens. The land was so plentiful that the tribelets rarely needed to travel over 100 square miles during the year. The Oljon and Olpen tribelets, numbering approximately 500 natives, lived in an area of 50 square miles near what is now La Honda and Pescadero.
Unaware of the existence of these coastal people, the King of Spain claimed their land as his own in 1585. The king ignored these holdings until the eighteenth century, when Russian fur trappers began to exploit the coast and its resources. In 1769, the king appointed Gaspar de Portola, accompanied by several priests including Fray Junipero Serra, to establish missions in the coastal area and thus colonize the Spanish territory. Leaving San Diego in July, Portola and his men arrived in this area in October, where they were welcomed by the Ohlone with gifts of seed cakes and deer meat.
Between 1770 and 1797, the priests established six missions in Ohlone territory. The priests had hoped to draw the Ohlone into the missions with the promise of an abundant life: there they would serve as apprentices, learning the European way of life - such as weaving, agriculture, and carpentry - and the teachings of the Christian faith. After several years, these Native Americans would be given land to set up farms around the missions as an example to draw more converts. However, the missions were soon filled to capacity, and conditions within the missions became crowded and depressed. European diseases, for which the Ohlone had no immunities, passed through the missions in devastating epidemics, killing one-third of the mission population. Many of the Ohlone refused to learn Christian doctrine and European skills, and often they attempted to escape.
Perhaps the most well known Ohlone in Native American folklore is Chief Pomponio, who escaped from a mission after being unceremoniously stripped of his tribal authority. Determined to seek revenge, he emerged in 1820 as a leader of a small band of rebels. For several years, he raided various missions, gathering more Ohlone sympathetic to his cause, and leaving a trail of robberies, murders, and rapes. After several unsuccessful attempts, the Spaniards captured Pomponio in 1823. According to legend, Pomponio's hideout was at the source of what is now called Pomponio Creek.
During the 1820's, Mexico won its independence from Spain, and in 1834 the Mexican government ordered all California missions to be closed and all their lands to be parceled out to men of good Spanish ancestry. At this time, the natives were released. Yet, the 64-year mission period had done irrevocable damage to the Ohlone people: not only had their numbers been significantly depleted by disease, but basket-making and other crafts were lost, rituals and dances were confused and forgotten, and native languages were dropped in favor of Spanish.
With the arrival of Anglo settlers during the same time period, conditions declined even further. While the Spaniards at least treated the natives as humans, most settlers showed nothing but contempt and disgust toward the Native Americans, and many natives were ruthlessly killed. In 1848, in the Treaty of Guadalupe, California was ceded to the United States, and by the 1860's the few remaining Ohlone had gathered in small ghetto-like villages and attempted to retrieve their lost culture. But as more settlers arrived, these groups gradually disappeared. The last full-blooded Ohlone died just a few years ago.
Meanwhile, the lumber industry on the peninsula was rapidly expanding. Sawmill activity in this area began as early as 1856 and continued until 1935, with more than fourteen mills supplying much of the peninsula with lumber, including San Francisco after the devastation of the earthquake in 1906. Trees too large to haul or with grain unsuitable for commercial lumber were often used to make shingles. Shingle mills, such as the mill operated on Pescadero Creek by John Dudfield until 1913, produced up to 100,000 shingles per day.
During the early lumbering years, lumber and shingles were shipped by sea at Pigeon Point, most likely transported to the coast along Old Haul Road, which runs through both camp sites. By the early 1900's a three-day route had been established to carry lumber from this area to a lumberyard in Palo Alto as well. The first day was spent hauling lumber over Haskins' Hill, named after Aaron Haskins, who operated a local shingle mill on 500 acres of land between present-day Memorial Park and La Honda, to La Honda in wagons drawn by six horses. The second day was spent traveling over Old La Honda Road to Palo Alto, and the third day returning to camp.
Lumber camp crews arrived in Jones Gulch in 1916. Thirty cabins were constructed for lumbermen and their families in what is now the Conference area of camp. After two previous mill fires, a third mill (later converted to the present dining hall) was constructed on the property in 1923 and was in operation through 1926. Evidence of logging in this area includes stumps, notches for springboards, and iron cables used to haul lumber. Sometime during this era, perhaps 1928, a fire passed through the region, leaving many scars still visible today.
In 1932, S.M. Black, who had acquired the property, offered to sell the 427 acres containing the developed area to the Y.M.C.A. for $15,000. At the same time she also offered to donate to the "Y" the 527 undeveloped acres on the other side of Pescadero Road. In 1934 this transaction was completed, and Jones Gulch has been a Y.M.C.A. camp ever since.
Redwood Glen Baptist Camp was originally three parcels of private property. In 1958 the Baptists bought the first piece of property from Dr. Hoffman, including the Hoffman home which is now Shepherd Lodge. The second property was purchased from Mr. and Mrs. Hall in 1959, adding the lower area where the staff building is. In 1963 the last section was acquired from Gladys Heiman, who stayed on as caretaker of the camp for a number of years. Her property included the area where the new Senior Center is, which is also where she and Martin Binion once operated the first Christmas tree farm in San Mateo County.
Websites
Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education: a California-based professional group that hosts conferences and has a website full of great resources.
Acorn Naturalists: a store filled with great teaching tools for the classroom or outdoors!
Banana Slug String Band: an environmental education musical group - we use a lot of their songs here at SJOE!
The Lorax: lessons and activities to accompany Dr. Suess' The Lorax.
ECOlogical Calendar: a beautiful poster calendar based on the natural world.
California Local Food Guide: information on how to get the freshest local food (great to pass on the food staff at your school!).
Books
Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder by Richard Louv
Sharing Nature with Children by Joseph Cornell
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