A record number of more than 3,000 elementary and middle school students learned to find and identify signs of species like the bobcat, raccoon, snowshoe hare and white-tailed deer in Vermont this winter. This success marks the fifth year of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department’s (VFWD) “Scat and Tracks” program. The hybrid outdoor education curriculum got its start in 2021 during the peak of COVID-19 school closures, and today it reaches kindergarten through ninth grade, as well as home school groups in all 14 Vermont counties.
“We have found there is a lot of appetite just for learning about the species who share our state, from both students and their teachers and families,” said Corey Hart, VFWD education specialist. “That’s true even for fairly common wildlife like and beavers and foxes. A recent survey we ran found less than half of Vermonters would say they are moderately or very knowledgeable about a surprising number of species.”
This year’s record Scat and Tracks enrollment was just over 3,000 students—including 271 home schoolers—and 218 participating educators. The first year it was offered only 390 students and 63 educators participated. Many teachers return year after year and recommend the program to their colleagues.
“We started Scat and Tracks back in 2021 as a way to help teachers get their students outside during the pandemic,” Hart said. “We never expected it to take off and keep running like it has done.”
The program is designed around a series of wildlife identification videos that participating teachers can share with their classes. Each episode highlights one of 16 Vermont species and describes its habitat needs and life cycle, conservation status, and of course how to find the species’ scat, tracks and other signs.
After every video lesson, teachers take their students outside looking for scat, tracks and other wildlife signs near their schools or homes. To help teachers who are new to leading nature walks, Hart provides a video masterclass on mentoring students in skills like making field observations and using a nature journal. Once field trips are complete, students and teachers can join Hart and department biologists in a group video call to share wildlife observations and bring questions directly to the experts.
“This year we had our deer biologist, our small mammal biologist, and many others join big group video calls to answer questions from students after their field trips,” said Hart. “The biologists were able to go into real depth about many Vermont species with the students, and to talk about what a career in conservation is like as well. It turned out to be an incredible hit for both the students and our scientists.”
For more information, visit vtfishandwildlife.com.
