Manchester Valley High School
Curriculum and Instruction
(Left) Spanish classes engage students by creating warning signs about every day routines that can harm the environment. To the right are student examples from Mrs. Wennell's Class. Approximately 90% of students in spanish take part in this project each year. That sounds green in any language.
Approximately 60 students each year take AP Biology students We conduct stream studies as a major project for the class. They participate in water testing, salamander searches, and Macro invertebrate analysis to make inferences about water quality. This study can determine the health of the watershed of Manchester Valley. They have collected eight consecutive years worth of data.
Science Research students partner with scientists from Marylannd Sea Grant to conduct a 30-day study on the relationships between algae and Spotted Salamander eggs. Students are responsible for daily data collection and water changes as salamander eggs hatch and young are raised.
Manchester Valley has its own 1200sqft greenhouse. It is used for instructional purposes at all academic levels. Classes like Science Research (I/II), Plant Science, Agricultural Research Capstone learn about growing for sustainability and find ways to grow more efficiently. The Manchester Valley Learning for Independence (LFI) classes have also had a role in plant care and maintenance
Approximately 20-30 students per quarter in our Wildlife Management course are taught about 10 best management practices provided by the United States Department of Agriculture and Soil Conservation. After learning about the BMP’s, students are asked to create a rough draft plan using at least 6 of the practices. Students then join with a partner in order to create a 3-D model plot of land using the practices.
Verde Esta Muy Bien, No?
Gina Felter (Middle) Principal for the Carroll county Public School's Outdoor School provides opportunities for our students to be counselor mentors for one week working with sixth graders at the residential camp. On average 16 of our students have the opportunity to work with the middle schoolers each year. Students have also had long-tern internship possibilities through the Career Coordinator Program.
AP Human Geography students participate in a Chesapeake Bay Sustainability Project. Students focus on the rise in sustainable agriculture over the last 50 years. Both assignments are located to the left in word documents.
(Above) Senior "Chappy" built Bat Boxes and created bat signs around campus for his Eagle Scout Project.
The Child Development Classes created a sensory garden directly adjacent to otheir classroom and learning lab. The Child development students at Manchester Valley teach the preschool students about the environment as they use the garden in the spring and fall. Preschoolers learn about plants, weather, insects as well as about themselves. The garden was built with generous donations from our community and some sweat equity from our own students. Ms. Kays and her students presented their garden at the 2016 Maryland Green School Youth Summit.
Math classes at MVH incorporate the environment into many lessons. To the left Mr. Glass leads a class in a clinometer activity to use angles to measure the heights of trees in the outdoor classroom.
Clinometer activity Clinometer instructions
English classes use nature as an inspiration in their writing, and
THOREAU-ly investigate "Walden Pond" To the right is unit and plan and student samples
Walden Pond Unit Seeing Nature Unit
