lh-servicelearning-blog

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Day 7 (3/31/17)

Today I actually got to do what I came here to do. I repotted a bunch of succulents and started new plants. A lot of them were growing too much and with plants like these you can actually cut off the leaves and make new plants. Which is really cool! I really like succulents because of this. So if your plant is dying or getting sick, you can easily just break off healthy looking leaves so you can make new ones. How it works is when you break off the leaf roots will start to grow from where the break happened and eventually small new leaves will grow. I’m gonna try this out on my own with some leftover leaves that I got. 

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Day 6 (3/19/17)

So today was the Spring Equinox event. It was really busy and hectic, I honestly didn’t have much fun. There were a lot of kids there and I’m not a huge fan of interacting with kids. The big thing that I had to do was help out with the tours going through the Tropical and Desert Domes. I actually gave one tour in the Desert Dome and it went...okay ahahah. I was kind of nervous and I couldn’t really follow the notes that I was given. So, luckily I wasn’t alone and someone who actually works for the Domes helped me out when I couldn’t talk. Which was really nice. After I was done with that I guided around the mascot “Smokey the Bear” around the building so kids and what not could take pictures with him.

It wasn’t terrible, but I’m glad that it’s done with. Ahahha.

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Day 5 (3/9/17)

So today I did more craft making for kids. Today I helped make these weird beetle clothes pin learning craft thing for kids to make. Making these bug crafts helps with learning about the beetle itself, but also helps the kids learn how to follow to directions. All I did was paint the pins so later on the kids can add on the other pieces such as the legs, arms, eyes etc.

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Day 4

So on March 4th when I volunteered I actually got to do stuff with plants! Today me and some other volunteers got a tour around the domes and learned a bunch of stuff for the Spring Equinox Event. I’m going to be a tour guide on that day and I needed to learn a little about the plants in the domes. Just a little bit of fun facts that’s all. 

Question!

What kind of learning experience do you think people can gain from taking tours in a botanical garden/conservatory?

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Day 2 (2/16/17)

So today my manager wanted me to figure out these “Bird nest bottles” that they want to hang up in trees. We take plastic bottles and fill them with string and bits like that, the birds will take the bits for their nests. The one that another volunteer made wasn’t efficient enough for the birds to get all the nesting material out. So I tried to see how big the holes should and could be for the birds to get everything out. 

Question: I’ve never actually seen this type of thing done before, do you think that birds will actually understand and use the materials to build nests? 

I’m kind of split down the middle, I feel like they will because birds are really smart but at the same time I don’t think they would understand what to do? I personally do not understand birds. 

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Day 1 (2/11/17)

So I finally was able to find a place to volunteer at! I’ll be working at the Mitchell Park Domes. My first day was today and it was pretty cool so far. I got a tour through the facility by my manager Paula, and we went over some of the things I can do for my service. One of the things I’ll be doing is next month they’re having an event for the Spring Equinox and I’ll be helping out and possibly giving a tour. Another thing is that she wants me to re work the flyer for the event to make it look better. Woo~ 

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So I thought that I was going to be volunteering at the UWM Greenhouse, but my schedule didn’t fit what the manager had available. So I emailed the Mitchell Park Domes, they responded to me initially with an event that I could volunteer for in March. The lady in charge asked if I was available on Mondays, but I’m not so I offered other days where I’m free. However, she hasn’t responded back to my reply yet. Hopefully I get a response soon. Ahhhhhhhh.

[lh-servicelearning-blog]

Hello!  I am Laura, I am a junior Illustration student  at MIAD and this is my blog for Service learning. In this class I will be volunteering at an organization to learn about a certain subject or field. I haven’t chosen a place yet to volunteer, but my suggested place are the greenhouse at UWM, Growing Power and the Mitchell Park Domes. I am really interested in plants so these are all really cool places.