1. Explain What the Kids in the BTN Story Are Doing

Episode 15 Teacher Resource 6th June 2017 Citizen Science Kids

Students will learn more about citizen 1. Explain what the kids in the BTN story are doing. science, conduct research into a native 2. What is citizen science? Australian animal and participate in citizen science projects. 3. How old is Griffin? 4. Explain how Griffin does his research. 5. What is the name of the app Griffin is using? 6. How long has Austin been playing the citizen science game? 7. Currently, Austin is the number _____ bird spotter in Australia. 8. Which competition did he win? Science – Year 4 9. How is the information collected by citizen scientists used? Living things, including plants and animals, depend on each other and the environment 10. How does participating in citizen science help kids? to survive (ACSSU073)

Science – Year 5 Living things have structural features and adaptations that help them to survive in their environment (ACSSU043)

Compare data with predictions and Class Discussion use as evidence in developing explanations (ACSIS218) Discuss the BTN Citizen Science Kids story as a class. Record what students know Science – Year 6 about citizen science on a mind map. What The growth and survival of living things are affected by the physical conditions of their questions do they have about citizen environment (ACSSU094) science? Use the following questions to help guide discussion: Science – Year 7 Interactions between organisms, including the effects of human activities can be  What is citizen science? represented by food chains and food webs (ACSSU112)  What sort of information does citizen science collect? Collaboratively and individually plan and  Why is citizen science important? conduct a range of investigation types, including fieldwork and experiments,  How has it helped science? ensuring safety and ethical guidelines are  Can you think of any examples of citizen science? followed (ACSIS125)  Who can be a citizen scientist and what sort of skills do they need?  Have you been involved in any citizen science projects? If so, which ones?  Would you like to be a citizen scientist? Why or why not?

©ABC 2017 Key Words Students develop a glossary of words and terms that relate to citizen science. Below are some words to get them started. Add words and meanings to your glossary as you come across unfamiliar words throughout your research. Consider using pictures and diagrams to illustrate meanings.

species conservation classify habitat scientific name threatened diversity preservation

BTN Citizen Science stories Ask students to watch the BTN Citizen Science story and BTN Backyard Bird Count story and answer the following questions:

1. Describe the scientific study featured in the BTN story. 2. Why is it important to find out more about South Australia’s koalas? 3. What has happened to koala populations in the eastern states of Australia? 4. Describe how school kids helped with the koala count project. 5. How was the data recorded? 6. What is citizen science? 7. What other sorts of citizen science research can people get involved in?

1. Describe the Backyard Bird Count. 2. How are the students recording their findings? 3. How long did they look for birds? 4. Why is it important to know about native birds? 5. The survey is a citizen ______project. 6. About how many of Australia’s bird species are under threat? 7. What can cause a species to die out? 8. What are the kids in the BTN story doing to help look after native birds in their area? 9. Name something you could do to help native birds in your area.

©ABC 2017 Native Animal Research Students will conduct research into a native Australian animal. Display the student’s research around the classroom or in a public space in the school.

 What are its special features?  What do they eat?  What is its habitat (where does it live)? Describe and illustrate.  How do they survive in their environment?  Is this bird threatened or endangered? If so, what are its threats?  What is your favourite thing about this bird?  What surprised you about your research?

Research project – Native Australian Animal

Scientific and common name

Appearance

Habitat – Where do they live? Locate where they can be found using Google Maps

Life Cycle

Conservation Status

Interesting facts

Photograph or illustration

©ABC 2017 QuestaGame The kids in the BTN story were submitting their animal sightings through QuestaGame. Download the app then discover and help preserve species by taking photos and submitting them. They’ll score gold for every sighting and extra gold if they can find something rare or interesting. The information is shared with CSIRO’s Atlas of Living Australia and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility which helps researchers understand how we can protect biodiversity.

Citizen Science Projects Here are some more citizen science projects for students to get involved in. When taking part in a citizen science project ensure that your class is familiar with the health and safety guidelines associated with the project.

Wildlife Spotter Help save threatened species and preserve Australia’s wildlife. Become a citizen scientist and assist researchers by looking for animals in wilderness photos taken around Australia. Go to the Wildlife Spotter website to register and start classifying!

Explore the Seafloor Volunteer as a citizen scientist on two important marine research projects. You don’t need to go anywhere – simply look at seafloor photos online and tag what you see. We’ll help with tutorials and information. You’ll be assisting in important scientific research, and you could also win an underwater camera. Go to the website to volunteer as a citizen scientist.

ClimateWatch ClimateWatch is the best way to record the seasonal behaviour you see in plants and animals, and help scientists understand how Australia’s environment is responding to climate change. Go to the ClimateWatch website for all the details.

©ABC 2017 ABC News – Kids sign up as citizen scientists with new app that feeds Australian species database http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-28/kids-citizen-scientists-new-app-feed-aust-species- database/8557814

BTN – Citizen Science http://www.abc.net.au/btn/story/s3814896.htm

Atlas of Living Australian – Get Involved http://www.ala.org.au/get-involved/

QuestaGame – The Game https://questagame.com/the-game/