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Listen to the Eagles' Message
A DVD celebrating the success of Bald Eagles in Iowa
We are excited to announce the completion of the "Listen
to the Eagles' Message". Thank you to all who worked so hard to see
it to it's completion. This dvd documents the life of a family of eagles
through an entire year. Teachers will want this dvd for their classroom
and families will want this for their children. Copies may be purchased
through SOAR. We will set up PayPal service at this website. If you can't
wait, contact SOAR at 712-683-5555 or email SOAR at diversityfarms@iowatelecom.net
DVD Project Summary
It’s time to celebrate. The once-endangered bald eagle has made a magnificent
comeback to Iowa as a nesting species. This project will celebrate successful
conservation efforts by documenting the nesting and wintering cycles of
Iowa bald eagles, honoring the bald eagle’s place in Iowa’s cultural history,
and preserving personal interviews with current wildlife biologists for
future generations.
RREEF will partner with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources
(IDNR), the US Army Corps of Engineers, Marion and Dallas County Conservation
Boards, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Iowa State University
Extension Service, Applied Arts, Inc. and other agencies, private non-profits,
and businesses. With these partners RREEF will create a DVD-format educational
tool that will include:
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15 minutes of live action footage documenting Iowa’s
bald eagles’ cultural importance, population status, and natural history,
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6 middle school level activities in a computer/student
interactive format,
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printable fact sheets, and
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public service announcements (PSAs).
The live action section of the DVD will be used at Bald
Eagle Day events across the state. The activities will be correlated to
the National Science Standards and may be used by teachers along with
the live action segment of the DVD as a stand-alone teaching tool on Iowa’s
bald eagles or as pre and post visit activities for Bald Eagle Day event
field trips. The activities will aid teachers in preparing for the Bald
Eagle Day event field trips, help students retain knowledge gained at
the events, and help initiate follow-up, action-oriented, conservation
projects involving bald eagles. Approximately eight Bald Eagle Day events
are held each winter across the state, reaching more than 15,000 students
at specially planned daylong field trips and more than 16,000 people during
the public events.
Statement of Need
The materials available on Iowa bald eagles are limited, out-dated, and
do not relate the recent successes of Iowa’s nesting population. Bald
eagles are attention grabbing and can provide a doorway to lead students
to environmental awareness, knowledge and skill building, and initiating
positive action to enhance Iowa’s natural resources. Activities designed
for the large number of teachers and student groups that visit Bald Eagle
Day events across Iowa would enhance the value of these field trips. Students
with pre-visit preparation would be better positioned to learn from the
first hand observations of wild bald eagles and presentations by wildlife
biologists, photographers, story tellers, and other guest speakers at
these events. Post activities would enhance student retention of knowledge
and would suggest positive environmental action-oriented projects for
teachers and students involving Iowa bald eagle conservation. Links would
be made with agricultural conservation practices and Naturemapping and
Iowater programs. The proposed DVD would turn a one-day field trip for
thousands of students into an extended environmental learning opportunity
with the potential to launch many conservation action projects.
Project Goals
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Celebrate the successful conservation efforts resulting
in the return of a healthy nesting population of bald eagles to Iowa;
with links to better water quality and conservation practices in agriculture,
increased respect for wildlife, and habitat conservation.
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Efficiently reach thousands of people with a positive
environmental message.
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Produce 1000 copies of a live action DVD documenting
the cultural importance, historic and current population status, and
natural history of bald eagles in Iowa.
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Design and incorporate into the interactive DVD format
activities for middle school students to enhance their knowledge and
retention of information about an environmental-health indicator species,
the bald eagle.
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Distribute copies of the DVDs to teachers bringing
students to Bald Eagle Day event field trips.
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Partner with federal, state, and local conservation
agencies, non-profits, and businesses to further distribute the Soaring
Into The Future DVD.
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Evaluate the impact of the DVD and incorporated activities
through focus groups of teachers and students. Evaluate the impact
of the DVD on the public, the number of Bald Eagle Day events, visitation
rates at events, and the number of conservation projects initiated.
RREEF is a non-profit organization founded in 2000. RREEF
works to provide environmental education opportunities for the public
by funding innovative projects for rural and urban communities. A major
part of RREEF involves providing scholarships for students pursuing careers
in agricultural and environmental sciences.
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