Wild Watch

Educators from the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation are collaborating with Avery County Schools to provide significant educational enrichment opportunities for students through a program called Wild Watch. The program is engaging every first-grade student in the county and supporting the instructional efforts of nine teachers in their classrooms.

Wild Watch provides hands-on, experiential learning in line with the North Carolina Standard Course of Study curriculum for students being introduced to key concepts in biology and science for the first time.

It includes six in-depth interactions with Grandfather Mountain’s education staff. The goal of the program is to increase student understanding in five key areas: basic ecological concepts, the joys of exploration, interconnectedness to nature, the impact of humans on their environment and the benefits of working together.

Michelle Malalang, education specialist with the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation, the nonprofit organization that owns and operates the Linville, N.C., nature park, oversees Wild Watch.

Hailing from North Florida, Malalang has a master’s degree in Montessori Education and two bachelor’s degrees in English and international relations, as well as additional certifications/endorsements in reading intervention and gifted. Throughout her 15 years in education she has taught upper elementary students, children with special needs and gifted students in suburban and urban settings. She believes every child deserves a quality education that excites them to learn, ask questions and wonder.

Her love for the environment developed as a young child living in Florida. Every weekend was spent at the beach from sun up to sun down, and she reveled in the sound of the surf, the feel of the ocean and being with all the creatures that made it their home. She said that Wild Watch is so special because it instills much of that same passion in her students.

“There’s a sense of fulfillment I get when I see a light ignite in students’ eyes because of something they experienced in Wild Watch,” Malalang said. “Their ‘wow’ moments are also my ‘wow’ moments. Seeing that kind of wonder will always be marvelous to witness, because to me, that light equates to hope for the future of the world and the people, plants and creatures within it.”

The program began in August 2021 with the children learning about the importance of making observations and scientific inquiry. During each lesson, the kids stay engaged by waving their arms like a tree, peering through magnifying glasses in nearby gardens or by singing the Wild Watch song.

The itinerary throughout the rest of the school year sees children learning about what plants need to survive, using tools to learn about geography and mapmaking, recognizing the needs of animals and learning about the different types of soils. In April, the program culminates in a field trip to Grandfather Mountain to see the mountain’s plants and animals up close and to learn about the different ways people work to protect and improve their environments.

Additionally, each classroom “adopts” an animal from Grandfather Mountain, who they learn about during the school year and get a chance to visit when they come to the mountain in April.

“I love the Wild Watch program,” Loretta Sluder, first-grade teacher at Crossnore Elementary, said. “It takes our science curriculum to another level, and having an expert, such as Miss Michelle, here to guide us and answer questions from the students has been great and has expanded their knowledge tremendously. They look forward to it, and it gets them engaged.”

Numerous studies, such as one published in 2002 entitled “Closing the Achievement,” show that environment-based education helps produce student gains in standardized test scores and grade-point averages while developing skills related to problem-solving, critical thinking and decision-making.

Malalang said she has seen firsthand how hands-on learning and adventuring outdoors help stimulate the minds of schoolchildren at a young age.

“Revealing the magnificence of Grandfather Mountain to where it becomes a core memory that positively influences the way students see nature is a key component of the program,” she said. “Connecting students with the natural world and providing pathways where children learn to interact with their environment is our goal. Hands-on learning encourages students to harness their own powers of observation, teaches them to use their senses and prompts them to think for themselves, all of which are fundamental in developing critical thinking skills.

Read about other education programs presented by Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation. The Eco Watch program reaches fifth grade students.