Project Exploration Blog

tonight i had the privelege of attending the All Girls Expedition send off and i had a few things to share about that. The All Girls Expedition is one of Project Explorations fine programs that is similar to Junior Paleontologists and the B.S.P.E but it is also very unique. Like J.P. the 9 girls spent a week studying the geology and biology of the site they are going to. in this case-Yellowstone natl park. through interviews with some of the girls i learned about volcanoes in Yellow Stone, Hot Springs, Geysers, all sorts of fun stuff i wish I could be a part of, alas, in another lifetime. each girl had to pick two animals or plants that lived in the area and do research on them while at the University if Chicago’s lab. these girls seemed so well researched concerning their animals and seemed to show real compassion, care and a connection to their animal, i found this wonderful. these girls were  well prepared for their expedition they even made a nice little guide book to help them on their trip. through my interviews i learned of some of the activities they have planned for the expedition, coyote tracking, hiking around the park, admiring geysers(Old Faithful)  and studying the wildlife which all the girls seemed Thrilled to do! one of the young women on this trip-Ta’kia mentioned her excitement to instruct other park goers on how to behave when confronting a wild animal and clearly told us to Not! touch the animal and keep a respectful distance away from it(good advice when confronted with the menacing PRONGHORN ANTELOPE!) i learned great new information from Ta’kia about the Uinta Ground Squirrel which apparently is not at all like the common squirrel sitting outside my window but the Uinta ground squirrel has different bone structure and anatomy and is sometimes seen as a sign of spring approaching. as for the pronghorn antelope, an animal i saw many times during My trip to montana, its white backsides are used to signify danger! so thats a fun little fact. i asked Ta’kia how this program made her feel about pursuing a career in science, well Ta’kia is about to become a senior in highschool and told me she needs to start thinking about her future, sensible thinking i thought. Ta’kia saw many possibilities for herself in and after college and she told me that A.G.E definitely got her to consider a possible major in a scientific field and maybe even a career! i asked Ta’kia had she ever been to montana before? her response “no” out west before? “well denver” i asked her had she ever been out into the wilderness like this? and she answered no but she was excited, she was excited for the new oppurtunities this program has offered her. all the girls i spoke to seemed so thrilled to be in this program and so curious! they were excited about all the new discoveries and new knowledge they would gain in Yellow Stone. I asked Ta’kia about what else she had planned for this summer and she told me about all the oppurtunities she passed by just to be with Project Exploration’s All Girls Expedition.

one lesson project exploration seemed to emphasize with this particular program is enviromental messages concerning predators and their prey. all the girls were able to express well developed knowledge on what happens when you remove an animal from the food chain, what happens to the animals below it, the animals above and the widespread affects of this. the girls were very passionate about the animals they researched and tried to teach lessons on minding our enviroment and making sure to keep populations in balance.

Another young woman i had the chance to interview was Genesis Villalobos. She is about to become a junior and is attending Perspectives Charter School. she like All the other girls on this trip was so excited for all the great new experiences she would have at Yellowstone. These girls were so used to their typical life at home in chicago and just could not wait to get out and explore! Genesis expressed her excitement to gain a new perspective on the world and the enviroment around her. it seems like the good people at P.E. did a fantastic job getting the girls into the exploring spirit. One other thing that kept coming up during my interviews with some of the girls was how priveledged they felt to be able to take part in this oppurtunity. they all knew that not everyone gets to see and learn and experience all that they were doing on the A.G.E and they were not about to let this oppurtunity go to waste. i told the girls that the wonderful thing about P.E. is they try to build relationships with their students, they continue communication and keep offering these precious oppurtunities to their students. Genesis told me she was always interested in nature and the wilderness and when she heard about this oppurtunity she made sure to pursue it. Genesis told me about her animal the black bear, she loved the fact that it chomps its jaws when it gets nervous and according to her research , when threatened a black bear won’t attack its foe but instead will run and hide up trees! the reason the black bears claws are so sharp and shaped the way they are isnt for mauling its foe, but for climbing up trees. Genesis was also able to tell me an interesting fact about coyotes being monagamous, meaning that they stay with one mate for their whole lives.

the last interview i was able to do was one with Michelle Delvalle. Michelle is about to be a senior and attends Ace tech highschool. Michelle told me all that she learned concerning the snow hare and the raven. Michelle has such a fascination with animals, interviewing her was a real joy. Upon her week studying with P.E. she developed a real love for the program and all that it’s done for her, like many of the girls i met tonight they never thought they would get a chance like this to go to Yellow Stone and study the wildlife there. The young women here like Michelle just couldnt wait to get wonderful knowledge that they hoped would help them in their future. Michelle just could not wait until she became one with nature, until she was totally immersed in the beautiful, natural world. She was looking forward to freedom from her usual life at home with family, Yellow Stone would be such a new experience for her and all the other girls that they could not wait to be a part of. When asked about the All Girls aspect of the trip Michelle told me that when having to make a choice between J.P. and A.G.E she chose A.G.E because she felt she could be more of herself around all the girls and was more comfortable expressing herself among other women.

When it came time for the girls to go up front and give their presentations to the families they showed an amazing understanding of the enviroment at Yellow Stone and that they were well prepared for whatever was in store. Whenever one girl presenting would be confronted with a tough question her fellow teammates were ready to help which i thought was wonderful. over the past week it looked like these girls built great relationships with each other and they will only grow while they are making their discoveries in Yellow Stone. i am so excited for these girls, it seems like a fantastic team and i know theyll come back home with great stories to tell. im so proud to be a member of P.E. a program that does such wonderful work with urban youth and giving oppurtunities and introduces kids to things they other wise might never have gotten to see. I’ll keep blogging as long as my readers keep reading. Until next time!