In Nebraska, the Platte River Valley and Audubon's Rowe Sanctuary are home to a migratory "pit-stop" for sandhill cranes. In this lesson, students will use resources on the National Geographic magazine feature Crane Cam to learn about how the land area in and around the sanctuary has changed over time. Students will examine the intended and unintended consequences of human environmental intervention by studying crane activity in the Platte River Valley, and by researching the effects of human intervention on bird populations—and the effects of bird populations on humans.

Geography, social studies, science

Standard 4: "The physical and human characteristics of places"
Standard 8: "The characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems on Earth's surface"
Standard 14: "How human actions modify the physical environment"
Standard 16: "The changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of resources"

Two to three hours

• Computer with Internet access
• Writing materials
• Paints, markers, poster board, and other art materials

Students will

• learn about the Crane Cam and Rowe Sanctuary projects in the Platte River Valley of Nebraska;
• research crane migratory patterns, conservation efforts involving the sandhill crane, and the intended and unintended consequences of these efforts; and
• discuss the relationship between conservation efforts and communities.

Early each year in Nebraska, thousands upon thousands of cranes come to the Platte River basin to rest, roost, and rejuvenate as they make their way from the southwestern United States to northern regions such as Alaska, Canada, and Siberia. Tourists also flock to the area, some coming back year after year because they find the experience so compelling.

Introduce students to the Crane Cam feature from National Geographic magazine. To pique students' interest in the sanctuary and its importance to cranes, as well as to millions of other animals, project one or more of the multimedia shows available on the About Cranes and Kids & Cranes sections of the site. [If the time of year is right, students can watch live activity via the Crane Cam itself.]

Have students work in small groups to develop presentations on one of the topics listed below. Presentations will be based on group exploration of the Crane Cam site and the videos on Kids & Cranes, and should include highlights from their research.

Activity 1:
Topics and Guiding Questions

• Sandhill Cranes: What is known about these birds, their migratory patterns, and their status in the world? What challenges do they face in their annual migration? How do human communities interact with the cranes?
• Rowe Sanctuary: Why was the sanctuary developed? What are some concerns about its future?
• Platte River Basin: How have humans, on local, regional, and global levels, affected the natural life of sandhill cranes and their migratory resting-place in Nebraska? How have these cranes had an impact on humans?

Students should use the sites' audiovisual and text resources, including related links in the sidebars. Listed below are questions that will help guide the students' research regardless of their chosen topic:

• Why was the sanctuary created? How has the land area changed over time, and why?
• How does the sanctuary help with crane migration?
• How does it help other species?
• Where do the cranes come from? What do they do while they are in Nebraska?

Allow students time to conduct their research and develop their presentations. Presentations should include a visual component. Remind students that they should focus their presentation on the specific topic they were assigned, rather than on the whole general subject. Have students present their findings to the class.

Have students discuss the major points in each presentation and then construct arguments for or against expanding the sanctuary to approach its original size more closely. What factors would they have to consider in evaluating such a proposal?

Have students work in "jigsaw" groups to create small murals or posters showing how the sanctuary, the cranes, the basin, and the local community interact. Posters may be made using paints, markers, printed pictures, and other materials of students' choosing. Each student should be prepared to explain the design of the poster, and how its various elements fit together.

• Use the information pages of the International Crane Foundation to research one of the cranes listed in National Geographic magazine’s World of Cranes map (PDF, Adobe Acrobat Reader required) as critically endangered or endangered. What are the reasons for the crane's endangerment? What is being done to protect or reintroduce the birds?
  
  
• Visit the International Crane Foundation's (ICF) Kids pages and lead students in creating origami cranes.
  
  
• The ICF has several activity packets available for classroom use. Multi-disciplinary activities of varying levels of difficulty for this age group are available in Levels I and II and III.
  
  
• Have students visit the Xpeditions Activity Department of Crane-Land Security to complete interactive activities about protecting cranes and their habitats, including an exploration of wildlife refuges or sanctuaries closest to their homes.

Audubon's Rowe Sanctuary
International Crane Foundation
National Geographic Magazine: Crane Cam
National Geographic Magazine: Crane Cam—Kids & Cranes