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Winter in Michigan’s North Woods: Amazing Animal Adaptations in Person

In-Person Outreach

Beaver eating aspen.

In order to survive winter, animals in the North Woods of Michigan adapt in many amazing ways. This interactive presentation will explore what plants and animals need to survive, the climate of our region, and why the seasons change. Using animal mounts, photos, and stories we’ll investigate the adaptations of animals such as owls, grouse, otters, fox, and beaver.

How do I get this program?
This program is available January 9 – April 14 within a 150 mile radius of Mackinaw City. This includes an area covering Alpena, Houghton Lake, Mt. Pleasant, Traverse City, Sault Ste. Marie, and Marquette.

To request a program call the administrative office in Mackinaw City (231) 436-4100 or via email at outreach@test42.mlivehosted.com. Programs are scheduled on a first come, first served basis.

What information do I need to know about the program?
– Each hour long program costs $100. A potential grant may be available to cover the cost of this program through our friends group, Mackinac Associates. Please inquire when booking.
– Please limit groups to 50 people or less.
– Two library sized table is needed for the presentation
– A slideshow is part of this program. A projector or television is required for this program.
– There is a 30 minute set-up/teardown time needed for programs
– After programs are scheduled, our Chief of Marketing may contact your local media to promote the program. Please let us know if this should be altered.

What education standards does this program meet?
*Allows for local, regional, or Michigan specific contexts or examples in teaching and assessment.

K – LS1-1    Use observations to describe patterns of what plants and animals (including humans) need to survive.*
K – ESS2-2   Construct an argument supported by evidence for how plants and animals (including humans) can change the environment to meet their needs.
K – ESS3-1   Use a model to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants or animals (including humans) and the places they live
K – PS3-1    Make observations to determine the effect of sunlight on Earth’s surface.
2 – LS4-1    Make observations of plants and animals to compare the diversity of life in different habitats.*
3 – LS2-1    Construct an argument that some animals form groups that help members survive
3 – LS4-3    Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.*
3 – LS4-4    Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem caused when the environment changes and the types of plants and animals that live there may change.*
3 – LS3-2    Use evidence to support the explanation that traits can be influenced by the environment.
3 – LS4-2    Use evidence to construct an explanation for how the variations in characteristics among individuals of the same species may provide advantages in surviving, finding mates, and reproducing.
3 – ESS2-2 Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
4-LS1-1       Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.
5 – PS3-1    Use models to describe that energy in animals’ food (used for body repair, growth, motion, and to maintain body warmth) was once energy from the sun.
5 – LS2-1    Develop a model to describe the movement of matter among plants, animals, decomposers, and the environment.
MS – LS2-1 Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem.*
MS – LS2-4 Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations
MS – LS2-2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.*
MS – LS1-5 Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how environmental and genetic factors influence the growth of organisms.*