Due to the current Covid-19 climate, about 20% of Lakeland students are staying home and learning virtually. Because of virtual learners around the state, the Discovery Park of America (Union City, TN) and the University of Tennessee at Martin have partnered together to provide free digital resources to teachers and parents to any of these students.
According to Katie Jarvis, Marketing and PR Manager for Discovery Park and host of the series, professors from UT Martin share a fun and entertaining 20-30 minute Zoom lesson utilizing their area of expertise. Topics covered include Japanese, computer science, astronomy, public speaking, history, music, geology and more. The lessons are recorded on Zoom and shared on Discovery Park’s education resource page.
“We met with our friends at UT Martin to explore ways we could combine our resources to support teachers and parents during this time, and collectively, we came up with this idea,” said Jarvis. “I am excited and honored to be the host of this series, especially with professors I had when I attended UT Martin.”
Although the lessons are geared toward students in grades 6-9, they are available for anyone interested in the covered topics.
Polly Brasher, Discovery Park’s Education Director stated, “This is a great opportunity for a university and a museum, both located in Northwest Tennessee, to collaborate together to bring rich, educational content not only to our local communities, but to students and lifelong learners around the world.”
Discovery Park also recently announced free virtual field trips that provide a unique, standards-based educational program that may be experienced from home or a classroom. These encompass grades 1 -12. Find more information HERE.
Or, if you’re feeling a little more adventurous and would like a hands on field trip for your virtual/remote learner, they are still hosting student groups for field trips and are open to the public. They are strictly following all recommended health and safety guidelines for employees and guests including masks.
More information can be found at discoveryparkofamerica.com/education
