Please Help!
OSA WISH LIST FOR THE 2018/2019 SCHOOL YEAR
OSA creates and provides a range of programs within Nyack's elementary schools, most of which we hope to make regular features of the school year. We spread programming across grades to link to the curriculum, and provide different learning experiences for different age groups. We also run programs as part of the Nyack Center After School Program. Below are some of the OSA Programs and Equipment on our Wish List for 2018-2019.
Programming Wish List: $11,200
OSA Programs bring kids to our local streams and the amazing Hudson River, teach them about watersheds, waterways, and the creatures that live in, and depend on, them. Children examine water samples and macroinvertebrates (stream critters) under microscopes. They plant and harvest from school gardens, learn about the central but often little known role of trees in the founding of our country, hatch chicks in the classroom, study the tectonic plates of our earth, and learn to see with new eyes the ecosystems they live in, and species they pass by, every day. Many of these programs grow from partnerships with local groups like Strawtown Studio, Keep Rockland Beautiful, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and others. At times, we hire environmental educators to assist with programming. To keep some of these wonderful collaborations going in 2018-2019, please consider contributing to our programs, including those on our wish list for the 2018-2019 school year:
1. How Clean is Our Stream?: What Macroinvertebrates Can Tell Us About Water Quality
All 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center Afterschool Program: $4,800
2. Plate Tectonics Jigsaw
All 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center Afterschool Program: $3,200
3. Opening Our Eyes: Local History and Ecology in Our Schoolyards and Parks
All 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center Afterschool Program: $3,200
In 2018-2019, SOAR is expanding its programs into all three elementary schools—Upper Nyack, Liberty and Valley Cottage—and will develop a core group of on-going programs in partnership with the schools and district.
Equipment Wish List: $13,080
• Microscopes: $3480
Equip all 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center’s Afterschool Program with binocular microscopes
• Waterway Field Kits: $6000
Equip all 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center Afterschool Program with seine nets, macroinvertebrate and fish identification books, plastic buckets, magnifiers, kid-sized waders, field thermometers, salinity testers, and pH probes.
• Chick Hatching: $3,600
Equip all 3 elementary schools and the Nyack Center Afterschool Program with incubation equipment, eggs, feed, and other equipment, and program management.
Help OSA Keep Growing: $20,000
Help us raise funds to keep a part-time coordinator—a vital part of our success to date. OSA is working to bring consistently high-quality programs to our schools that directly fulfill the curriculum, allow teachers and schools to implement them with ease, provide outdoor adventures to after-school programs, and—most importantly— spark the wonder of nature and science in our community’s kids. To do this, OSA needs to keep building its institutional capacity. In 2017, we hired a wonderful part-time coordinator to complement the contributions of volunteer parents. This has made an enormous difference in how well and quickly we work. OSA volunteers will continue to participate as advisors and steering committee members, and help with program activities, but the day-to-day operations of so many different, and varied activities, need the attention of a professional. We are also hoping to add an educator to our part-time team, to provide guidance on curriculum, lesson plans, and program development.