When You Light a Fire of Interest, Children Will Take It From There.

Last week, I shared this website with my classes.  It is a mesmerizing real time look into an eagle nest.  The mother and father bald eagle share the responsibilities of taking care of three tiny, downy eaglets.  We compared and contrasted how humans and eagles take care of their young.  We talked about basic needs of animals including what they eat. (The father brought a large fish into the nest and the mother fed it to the eaglets.) The most incredible thing was that by the next day, several children had checked out books about eagles from the library and many had gone online at home to research eagles. They discussed things like how much the mothers and fathers weigh, how many eggs are laid at one time, how old eagles get to be, and what the chances were that the eaglets would make it to maturity.  One student brought pictures that she had printed to share with others. This was not an assignment.  It was children who were interested in learning about a specific subject and having the motivation to find out more.  I LOVE it!
http://www.wvec.com/marketplace/microsite-content/eagle-cam.html