WILDERNESS
SENIOR SEMINAR IN ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
Enrolling in Wilderness is a great way to fulfill your English and Social Studies requirements for senior year. This 2.5 credit course explores the relationship between human beings and the natural world. It is centered on the belief that by understanding and appreciating our local environment, we enrich our own lives. Our base of study is the Ward Pound Ridge Reservation.
Dick Budnik Photography
Typically, we visit the Reservation 2-3 times a week. These walks and talks will focus on topics such as reading the landscape, local history, land use, tree identification, the ecology and history of stone walls, listening to the outdoors, identifying animal tracks and dens, etc..
We will also take several field trips. You can plan on hiking Breakneck Ridge on the Hudson River, spending a day working on a local organic farm, as well as visiting The Wolf Conservation Center, and ropes/challenge course.
In the 4th quarter, every student participates in an internship. During this time, class does not meet. Instead you will be out in the “real world” working in a field that interests you. Of course, the job may be related to the environment, but it doesn’t have to be. In the last few years students have interned at the Wolf Center, The Beardsley Zoo, the Maritime Center, in elementary and middle schools around the county, at recording studios, engineering firms, architectural firms, with veterinarians – the list goes on. It’s a great opportunity for you to investigate any field of interest.
In addition to participating in authentic field experiences, students are encouraged to develop an understanding of our place in the natural world through the literature and the arts.
We will read and discuss books related to the natural world. Our class texts are: Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard, Reading the Forested Landscape by Tom Wessels and The Last American Man by Elizabeth Gilbert. Other...