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Kindergarten: Tracking the Path of Cooperstown's Fallow Sika Deer
The Kindergarten classes decided to learn more about the local fallow deer population and its relationship to the global community.
We started our exploration by touring the Clark Foundation's fallow sika deer preserve with the deer's caretaker, Lyman Townsend. Lyman told the Kindergarteners about how Ambrose Clark brought the deer from Germany in 1930 to create a deer preserve behind his house. His colleagues walked us through the hay shed and the pens where the deer get their shots every year. They explained how as domesticated animals, the fallow deer are different from wild deer in that they need humans to help them live in their environment.
The Kindergarteners then went back to the overlook to observe the deer and discussed with Phoebe what makes up a habitat and what things they saw in the fallow deer habitat.
The following week, Kindergarteners learned about the origin of the sika deer going back to central Japan. Using props and movements, they helped Phoebe tell the Shinto tale of how the sika deer brought the lightning god to Nara to be with his siblings. Following the tale, we discussed how animals mean different things in different places in the world. We compared and contrasted the tale to how deer are thought of in our communities. The Kindergarteners then drew what they remembered being in the sika deer habitat in Cooperstown. During this process, we passed around pieces of deer skeletons to see what deer anatomy looks like under their skin. Check out their habitat drawings for yourselves!
In their final lesson, the Kindergarteners created a list of facts they wanted the Cooperstown community to know about their neighborhood sika deer. It can be viewed and downloaded here.
The Kindergarteners also discussed how they wanted to have a space where their families and friends could pretend to be in the deer preserve. As we can't make a green screen available online, please enjoy incorporating this Zoom background of Cooperstown's sika deer in your next call!
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