[Bus honking]
Scientists, are you ready for a Virtual Field Trip from sunny Los Angeles?
Let's go to the California Science Center!
[Children cheering]
[Children cheering] With your hosts
Mariela
and Monica
with a special appearance from
Jennifer Lawrence!
Let's go to the California Science Center!
[Children cheering]
Hi scientists, welcome to Virtual Field Trips at the California Science Center!
Before we get started, there are a few things we need to go over.
[Music]
All Virtual Field Trips will have a Question of the Day and today's question is...
[Computer beeping] How do the changes in an environment affect what lives there?
Pause the video now to write down the Question of the Day in your notebooks and don't forget
to write or draw things you observe in the video to help you answer the question.
[Music]
All Virtual Field Trips will also have a buzzword!
Today's buzzword is...
[Magical sound]
Survive!
Anytime you hear this word, be sure to make check marks or tally marks somewhere in your notebook
to keep track of how many times you hear the buzzword!
Before I forget, there may be times we might ask you to pause to think about a question.
You'll see this sign and hear this sound [Ding] to remind you to pause.
Okay, I think we're ready for a Virtual Field Trip. Let's go!
[Music]
Well scientists, I thought we would start our day in the Roy A. Anderson Blackbird Exhibit & Garden. Let's go!
[Music]
Look! These prints were made by our staff
to show you the types of animal prints you might see in wilder areas of Southern California.
I know that these were made in concrete so I know they aren't from something that just walked by,
but if we look closely, we can find hints of living things living in this area!
In order to survive in this garden, all creatures living here must have all their needs met.
As we investigate our surroundings a little closer, we can find clues or evidence of living things, like this spiderweb!
Wow, it's so big!
Now we don't see the spider near its web, but we might be able to see things getting caught in its trap.
All that yummy food is one way that this spider can make sure it can survive.
Oh, and here I'm noticing these acorns that look like they've been eaten by something!
I bet if I sit here long enough, I might find which creature was snacking on these acorns.
Oh, you see there, scientists? A squirrel! The squirrels use these large trees as shelter.
That shelter is protection from predators so that they can survive.
And finally, this might not be the most pretty finding, but I see some scat!
Yeah, I know, kinda gross, but everybody poops.
And we can learn a lot from scat. If you notice, it looks like splatter.
This tells me that the animal who left this waste behind was probably moving.
This evidence can show us that some things are surviving well,
some things are surviving less well, and other organisms might not be surviving at all!
Hmm, well, these clues help me to know what is here currently,
but I wonder if this is what Exposition Park looked like millions and millions of years ago?
I think it may be time to travel through time. Are you ready, scientists?
[Siren noises]
Whoa, scientists! We made it to a long, long time from when we started!
What's... what's that over there? It's a... a dinosaur!
RUN!
[Dinosaur groans]
[Birds chirping]
Remember how I mentioned that all things poop?
Well, so do these big beasts! It must have been a really big scat!
And now that I have a look around, the landscape looks so very different from where I began.
That makes me wonder... what changed? What caused the dinosaurs to not be seen in our current time?
And how do we even know that they were even here?
Hmm, maybe we need to go back to current time and find some evidence. Let's go!
[Siren noises]
Well, that was a lot of fun, but I have so many questions!
As I look around, I'm noticing that the land has changed so much! I bet dinosaurs didn't have what they needed to survive.
And now that I'm back here, it just hit me! It's fossils! Scientists use fossils to understand
what lived in an area a long, long time ago! And I think I know where we can go find some. Let's go!
Scientists, look what I picked out!
Fossils are the remains or impressions of a prehistoric organism preserved in petrified form, like this petrified wood,
or as a mold or a cast in a rock, like this dendritic fossil!
Scientists can also use rocks and minerals, like this geode, to investigate what an environment was like a long, long time ago.
What are some things that you observe?
I think I know someone we can talk to who will tell us how the California Science Center has changed over time
and how that has affected what lives in this environment.
[Music]
Hi Jennifer!
Hi, I'm Jennifer Lawrence. I'm the senior exhibit developer here at the California Science Center, which means I help make exhibits!
So I know that the exhibits inside of the California Science Center have changed a lot,
but I was wondering if you could talk to us a little bit about how the environment has changed outside of the California Science Center!
Yeah, let's go!
And just like we're making changes to exhibits inside the Science Center, the outside of the Science Center changes too!
This front of the Science Center you see right here? It was built in 1912,
but the whole rest of the building was built in 1998 to make room for all these new exhibits.
We've also added planes and changed the landscape!
And every time we change the landscape, it has the potential to change the kind of organisms that live here too.
Let's go take a look at a new area that we just recently finished some new landscaping:
the Roy A. Anderson Blackbird Exhibit & Garden! It's got some new organisms that moved in a while ago
and we'll go find out more about them, come on!
Changes we make around the Science Center not only affect the experience that you have when you come visit,
but they also affect the kind of life we have living around the Science Center.
We have all kinds of organisms: squirrels and plants and trees.
This used to be a big flat parking lot, but by bringing in this garden, we brought lots of life that can survive here.
One species that came in are Western fence lizards.
And they moved in, we think, in a big pack of mulch that arrived here, but now they've been surviving
and thriving in this garden for up to 10 years! And their closest neighbors are like a mile away!
[Music]
Hi scientists! Today, we are going to be doing a nature sketch!
In order for you to do the sketch, you're going to need your notebook, a pencil, and nature!
Wondering where you're going to get nature? Well, there are a few ways that you can do this activity.
If you have a backyard or a front yard, you can go there!
But if you don't, you can find a window to make observations of the nature around you.
Look closely, nature is hiding in places you might not be thinking of!
One other tip, scientists, you can go for a walk and take pictures on a cell phone
and bring those back to do your nature sketch later.
Scientists, I want you to think about where you might go to do your nature sketch.
Think about places near you that have plants. The nature you find might be small,
but there is a lot you can learn about it. Maybe you have a tree nearby or a potted plant!
Those are great options for this sketch.
Maybe you might encounter other living things hiding in places where you take walks or as you drive through town.
The most important thing is that we want to make observations of the same space in a few different ways.
For this segment, watch it all the way through so you know what you'll be doing,
then watch it again once you've selected the nature you'll be sketching.
Without leaving the video, take a few seconds to think about what nature [Ding] you might want to observe.
Let me tell you how this will work. We will do our nature sketch over two rounds.
Round one is Notice Nature. Here, you will draw and write what you see.
Round two is Wonders of Nature. In this round, you will ask questions about the nature that you're drawing.
For each round, time yourself for five minutes. If you need more time, you can extend your timer.
Remember scientists, we have a focus question:
How do the changes in an environment affect what lives there? This will help guide us as we do our nature sketch.
Okay scientists, [Ding], it's time to pick your nature. Pause the video and get what you need.
Watch me first. Once you've selected the nature you will be observing, you want to be able to see it and have your notebook nearby.
If you don't have a notebook, you can use a sheet of paper like me.
As I am looking at this picture, I am noticing shapes and putting it on my paper.
The nature I picked has so many things I could draw, but I just want to focus on a few things.
I'm going to start with this tree. Notice I am not erasing anything.
It's okay to make mistakes, scientists! I'm not making a pretty drawing. I'm trying to get my ideas on paper.
You can use words to explain what you see! This helps to explain your ideas to others.
Here, I am noticing details on this tree. I am going to zoom in closer by drawing a circle like this.
As I look closer, I'm noticing a shape on the bark that looks like the letter M.
I'm gonna start by drawing that and then adding more detail.
Using this technique helps to show others closer details that they might not see.
Okay, scientists, get your timers ready. [Ding] It's time to notice nature! Once your time is up, move on to Round two.
Remember our Question of the Day? This will guide us in Round two. Watch me first.
In this next round, I'm going to use a pen so that I can see the difference between my 'noticings' and wonders.
You can use a pen or any coloring tool.
Having two different colors on your paper will help you keep your ideas organized.
In the first round, I drew this line to represent all the leaves on the tree.
Since there are a lot of leaves, I wonder if there are animals that live there?
Do you notice any evidence that there are living things where you're observing?
Do you have any questions about what creatures might live here?
As you make observations, remember the Question of the Day:
How do the changes of an environment affect what lives there?
Here, I notice the bench, which tells me that humans use this space! This makes me wonder: how do humans change what lives here?
How might one organism affect another? Do you see any evidence of humans? Write that down!
[Ding] Now it's your turn, scientists. Get your timers ready! Let's wonder about nature!
It was fun drawing with you, scientists! Before we go, check out these scientists and their finished drawings!
If you have a chance, tag us on our social media! Now let's head back to the Discovery Room!
What a great field trip! Let's go over all the things that we did today!
We explored the space and observed the living creatures that live in the area around the California Science Center.
We then traveled through time to see what things looked like a long, long time ago
and found that fossils help us give evidence about the past!
Next we met up with Jennifer, who shared how things have changed here at the California Science Center
and the lizards that have made their home here after we created an environment they could survive in.
Finally, we did a nature sketch with Mariela, where we noticed things around us and how those living things survive.
Do you remember the Question of the Day? Can you use the buzzword to answer the Question of the Day?
[Ding] Pause the video now to try to answer the Question of the Day using the buzzword!
How do the changes in an environment affect what lives there?
Okay scientists, it's time to count our check marks! How many times did you hear the buzzword?
[Ding] Pause the video now to count your check marks or tally marks.
Drum roll, please! And the answer is...
Drum roll, please! And the answer is... 10!
We hope you had fun on this Virtual Field Trip at the California Science Center
and we look forward to seeing you next time!
[Bus honking]
For more Virtual Field Trip fun, visit our website!