The Outdoor Classroom

06/01/2016

For the past 12 years, The Outdoor Classroom has offered a wide variety of environmental education programs and activities to introduce children, students and adults to the wonders of the natural world using the resources of Boyce Mayview Park.

Our programs have been praised by students and teachers. However, we have not been able to maintain sufficient funding to continue offering programs. As a result, the Board of Directors of The Outdoor Classroom have reluctantly decided to suspend operations effective June 2, 2016. We are in the process of refunding payments that have been made for programs scheduled for June 2, 2016 or later.

The Board wishes to acknowledge the dedication and teaching excellence of the Classroom staff and the support of our many friends. We believe that the benefits delivered by more than a decade of environmental education programming stand as a testament to The Outdoor Classroom's mission to connect the people of southwestern Pennsylvania with their environment.

The staff and Board of The Outdoor Classroom thanks you for your past support and wishes you the best in your future education endeavors.

05/13/2016

Join us Saturday for the annual (and international!) Migratory Bird Count! Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Bird migration has been recorded for over 3,000 years with ancient Greeks such as Homer and Aristotle having made note of the movement patterns of cranes. The timing of migration seems to be controlled primarily by changes in day length. Migrating birds navigate using celestial cues from the sun and stars, the earth's magnetic field, and probably also mental maps. What migrants will you spot during the count? Neo-tropical Warblers? Rose Breasted Grosbeaks? Barred Owls? Call our offices and let Jessica know you plan to come birding!

05/11/2016

This guy has been calling right outside our offices all day! Baltimore Orioles are named for their resemblance to the coat of arms of Lord Baltimore (Cecil Calvert), the first governor of the Province of Maryland (1600s). Baltimore Orioles build a cup shaped nest which hangs from a tree twig. Favorite foods of the Baltimore Oriole include tent caterpillars and dark berries and fruits. Placing orange slices and grape jelly in your bird feeder can help attract Orioles!

05/06/2016

We had a small group for the NestWatch Citizen Science program by Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvanie tonight but we were able to see and touch multiple types of nests! Can you name the birds that belong to these nests? Remember, unless you have a special permit you are not allow to collect any parts of a native song bird which includes: feathers, eggs and nests!

05/04/2016

Since it's lunch time, here's a little info on a very interesting eater; the wheel bug! A wheel bug is a type of assassin bug, and as their name suggests, the entire family of assassin bugs (Reduviidae, 7,000 species) are ambush predators. They use their long rostrum as a piercing instrument. After piercing, the wheel bug injects its victim with potent saliva that contains an enzyme which destroys the soft tissue. Wheel bugs are considered beneficial bugs since they generally liquefy and suck out the innards of creatures we consider pests; caterpillars and stink bugs. Avoid handling these bugs, their rostrum can pierce human skin and cause a painful bite. Allergic reactions to their bite have been reported.

05/02/2016

Would your little one like to build a bear den? Learn where the color green comes from? How about build a makeshift shelter? Spend the day learning about animals with the Pennsylvania Game Commission? Our BRAND NEW summer camp themes have something for everyone! They're already filling up, so register now!

http://www.theoutdoorclassroompa.org/registration_events.asp

1. You will need a credit/debit card to register online. We use the secure PayPal service but you do NOT need to have a PayPal account.2. Scroll down on this page to find the program you wish to attend and click on "register now".3. Completely fill out the registration form for all participants …

04/27/2016

Do you have arachnophobia, the fear of spiders? Did you know that a "Daddy Long Legs" is not actually a spider? They are in an order of arachnids know as harvestmen and are more closely related to mites and wind-scorpions (solifugae) than spiders. There are over 6,000 species of harvestmen world wide! Harvestmen have one body part instead of a true spider's two body parts. Harvestmen tend to be detritivores while true spiders are predators. True spiders eat only a liquid diet while harvestmen are able to digest solid food items.

04/23/2016

Despite the rain earlier today the night is beautiful! Where are all the folks who registered for tonight's Moonstruck Hike?! You're missing some great creatures.

04/22/2016

The Outdoor Classroom had a blast teaching at the Who Works the Rivers? career day event on the Gateway Clipper Fleet! About 65 high school juniors and seniors boarded the boat to learn about the thousands of jobs provided by Pittsburgh's rivers and waterways. Thanks for having us!

04/22/2016

04/18/2016

April showers bring May...apples? Mayapples are a common woodland plant with umbrella shaped leaves. Stems with a single "umbrella" will not flower or fruit. Stems with two "umbrellas" will produce a flower in early May (hence their name!) and a fruit later in the summer. The entire plant is poisonous, with the fruit being slightly less toxic than the rest of the plant. If ingested, it can cause nausea, vomiting and even swelling of the stomach and intestines, which can be fatal. However, the toxin they possess (Podophyllotoxin) has been used in a variety of chemotherapy treatments and is on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines, a list of the most important medications needed in a basic health system.

04/15/2016

Ewww, what's that smell?? If you're walking in the forest and smell something foul, it's probably sessile trillium! Sessile trillium, or toad shade, has a single foul smelling flower that rests on top of its three mottled leaves. It gets its name from the Latin word sessilis, meaning low sitting, referring to the stalkless flower. The maroon petals of the flower never open. The foul smell it emits attracts flies, its main pollinator! In mass, these flowers tend to have a rotting meat smell. Yum! A fly's favorite!