- Wichita Public Schools
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2021-22 Virtual Field Trip Edventures
What's an edventure?
Edventure are a series of virtual field trip experiences focused on a seasonal theme or unit of study. Think of Edventures as virtual one day conferences designed for PK-12 students. These involve virtual author visits, guest speakers, walking tours of special locations, and career explorations. Most of our field trip sessions are 30 minutes and recorded so classrooms that could not attend a live session can access them on demand the next day.
We value enrichment and deeper content explorations for all students. While a few Edventure Days are targeted for specific grade levels, we design most for PK-12 with individual sessions for early childhood, intermediate, middle, and high school students.
NOTE: Our EdTech Team designs the Edventures for the Wichita Public Schools, but all districts and classrooms from anywhere are welcome to join in. Great learning experiences are for everyone.
Upcoming Edventures
THURSDAY, APRIL 21 - Party for the Planet Earth Day Edventure
We're celebrating Earth Day in a big way with our friends at the Sedgwick County Zoo, Great Plains Nature Center, and Watermark Books. Save the date for Thursday, April 21st, to join us for all the virtual fun!
Website coming soon
WEDNESDAY, MAY 4 - May Your Future Be With You Career Day Edventure
May the 4th is commonly known as Star Wars Day, but we're expanding that idea for our 2nd Annual Future Ready Career Day. We're hosting over 35 guest speakers aligned to career pathways. Join us for the May Your Future Be With You event on Wednesday, May 4th.
Website Coming soon
WEDNESDAY, MAY 11 - 4th Grade Regions of US Edventure through America's National Parks
4th grade classes are invited to join us for a special Edventure just for them! We're visiting National Parks across America to explore some of the natural habitats and the animals that thrive in these different ecosystems.
Website Coming Soon
2021-22 Completed Edventure Recordings Now Available
RECORDINGS NOW AVAILABLE - Digital Citizenship Edventure for Grades PK-12
Highlights include:
- Personal balance with technologies
- Tips and tricks for online searching
- Interviews with local human resource representatives on what companies look for in digital footprints
- Financial literacy with online shopping
- Securly Internet Filter 101 - How we keep students safe
- Careers in cybersecurity
- And more
For more details and links to all the recordings can be found at our Visit the Digital Citizenship Edventure Website
RECORDINGS NOW AVAILABLE - Animal Safari Edventure Day for Grades PK-12
We're excited to be partnering with our friends at The Sedgwick County Zoo and the Great Plains Nature Center for the 2nd annual Animal Safari EdVenture Day. On Thursday, September 30th, we featured over 15 virtual field trips.
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Edventure Schedule9:30 Sessions
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Great Plains Nature Center Animal Program (Grades PK-2)
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Let's Make Waves and Motion with the Humboldt Penguins (Grades 3-8)
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Animal Hospital Tour (Grades 6-12)
10:30 Sessions-
Great Plains Nature Center Animal Program (Grades PK-2)
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It's Time to Feed the Animals - a Visit to the Zoo Commissary (Grades 3-12)
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Animal Enrichment with Dr. Hall (Grades 4-12)
11:30-12:15 LUNCH AND LEARN Session-
Golf Cart Safari at the Zoo (All Grades)
1:00 Sessions-
Scat Chat (Grades 1-12)
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You Can Have a Positive Impact on Climate Change (Grades 4-12)
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Great Plains Nature Center Animal Program (Grades 6-8)
2:00 Sessions-
Children's Farm Feeding Encounter (Grades PK-2)
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Leopards and Other Big Cats (Grades 3-12)
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Great Plains Nature Center Animal Program (Grades 6-8)
3:00 Sessions-
The Tortoise and the Hare: Giant Aldabra Tortoise Encounter (Grades PK-2)
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Zoo Boat Habitat Tour (Grades 3-5)
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Links to all the recordings can be found at our Animal Safari EdVenture Website
RECORDINGS NOW AVAILABLE - Holocaust Remembrance
Thursday, October 7, we invite grades 8-12 to join us for a day of guest speakers and virtual learning connections on the Holocaust.
On Demand Opportunities available all day:
- Friends University Fine Arts Department Honors Holocaust Composers
- Survivor Stories
- Self-directed virtual field trips
Live Sessions Schedule:
- 9:00-9:45a Live Tour of the Irena Sendler Story Exhibit located at The Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes
- 10:30-11:15a Virtual Author Visit with Sharon Cameron presented by Watermark Books and Cafe
- 1:00-1:45 - Found Voices: Anne Frank and the Power of Writing with the Indianapolis Children's Museum
RECORDING NOW AVAILABLE - Watermark Books and Cafe Author Visit - Sharon Cameron
Grades 8-12 are invited to join us on Thursday, October 7 for a chance to hear Sharon Cameron as she shares the story of her new WW2 novel Bluebird and her critically acclaimed Holocaust true story The Light in Hidden Places.
Sharon Cameron's debut novel The Dark Unwinding was awarded the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators' Sue Alexander Award for Most Promising New Work and the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, and was named a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection. Sharon is also the author of its sequel, A Spark Unseen; Rook, which was selected as an Indiebound Indie Next List Top Ten selection, a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection, and a Parents' Choice gold medalist; and The Forgetting, a #1 New York Times bestseller and an Indie Next Pick of the List selection, and its companion novel, The Knowing.
RECORDING NOW AVAILABLE - Watermark Books and Cafe Author Visit - Varian Johnson
Middle School classrooms are invited to join us on Wednesday, October 13 to hear from author Varian Johnson and hear about his newest book Playing the Cards You're Dealt.
Varian Johnson is the author of several novels for children and young adults, including The Parker Inheritance, which won both Coretta Scott King Author Honor and Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor awards; The Great Greene Heist, an ALA Notable Children’s book and Kirkus Reviews Best Book; and the graphic novel Twins, illustrated by Shannon Wright, an NPR Best Book.
To view the recording visit our USD 259 Virtual Author Visit Recording Page
RECORDINGS NOW AVAILABLE
Fall Festival Virtual Field Trip Edventure
Our 2nd Annual Fall PK-12 Virtual Field Trip Fall Festival #Edventure is a series of live and on demand learning opportunities that support current content
- Science (Animal and Plant Science, Physics)
- Social Studies, (Geography, Culture Studies, History)
- Languages (Cultural Connections)
- ELA (Literature, Drama, Writing)
- Art (Sculpture, Drawing, Painting)
- Career Connections (Writing and Performing Arts, Culinary Arts, Aquaculture, Agriculture, Entrepreneurship)
Visit the official Fall Festival Edventure Website for more details
RECORDING NOW AVAILABLE - Watermark Books and Cafe Author Visit - Kate DiCamillo
Grades 6-8 are invited to join us Friday, November 12 for a chance to hear from Newbery Author Winner Kate DiCamillo as she shares her newest title The Beatryce Prophecy.
The theme of hope and belief amid impossible circumstances is a common thread in much of Kate DiCamillo’s writing. In her instant #1 New York Times bestseller The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, a haughty china rabbit undergoes a profound transformation after finding himself facedown on the ocean floor—lost, and waiting to be found. The Tale of Despereaux—the Newbery Medal–winning novel that later inspired an animated adventure from Universal Pictures—stars a tiny mouse with exceptionally large ears who is driven by love to become an unlikely hero. And The Magician’s Elephant, an acclaimed and exquisitely paced fable, dares to ask the question, What if?
Kate DiCamillo, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature for 2014–2015, says about stories, “When we read together, we connect. Together, we see the world. Together, we see one another.” Born in Philadelphia, the author lives in Minneapolis, where she faithfully writes two pages a day, five days a week.
To view the recording visit our USD 259 Virtual Author Visit Recording Page
RECORDING NOW AVAILABLE - Watermark Books and Cafe Author Visit -Tracey Baptiste
Grades 3-5 are invited to join us on Wednesday, November 17 for a chance to hear about Tracey Babptiste's newest titles African Icons:Ten People Who Shaped History and Looking for a Jumbie.
Tracey Baptiste was born in Trinidad, where she grew up on jumbie stories and fairy tales, and decided to be a writer at the wise old age of three, after her mother bought her an oversized illustrated Grimm’s Fairy Tales. “It was so spellbindingly beautiful, I thought I wanted to live in its pages my entire life.”
Her debut, a young adult novel titled Angel’s Grace, was named one of the 100 best books for reading and sharing by New York City librarians.
To view the recording visit our USD 259 Virtual Author Visit Recording Page
DECEMBER 14 - Winter Wonderland Edventure for Grades PreK-12
Tuesday, December 14th we hosted our 2nd annual Winter Wonderland Edventure with several seasonal connections to classroom content.Recordings now available
- Wichita CityArts Presents: How to Draw Your Own Mug of Hot Chocolate
- Exploration Place: How Snowflakes Form
- Exploration Place: Frosty and Frozen Live Science Show
- Friends University Fine Arts Performances
- Tour Winter Holidays and Celebrations Around the World (35+ videos covering all 7 continents to explore
- Gingerbread Decorating at Cheri’s Bakery in Wichita – Grades 4-12
- Lee Richardson Zoo in Garden City Presents – The Animals of Jan Brett’s The Mitten – Grades PK-2
- Animal Adaptations for the Winter with the Great Plains Nature Center – Grades PK-2
- A Visit with Mrs. Claus – Grades PK-2
- Nature’s Signs of the Winter Season with Botanica Wichita – Grades PK-2
- Performance - Meet Charles Dickens as He Presents A Christmas Carol – Grades 7-12
- December Down Under with Our Friends at Go2Science – Grades PK-5
- How to Catch a Gingerbread Man: Adam Wallace Virtual Author Visit – Grades PK-5
Winter Wonderland EdVenture Website
DECEMBER 14 - Watermark Books and Cafe Author Visit - Adam Wallace
Adam joined us from his home in Australia to read his book How to Catch a Gingerbread Man, create some illustrations with students, and share holiday traditions in his home country.
Adam Wallace is a New York Times, Amazon and USA Today Bestselling author who loves writing stories that make children laugh and get excited about reading and drawing and writing. He also love taking naps and listening to music. but not at the same time. He has over 80 books published and out in the world, and love each one as if it were his own child...except if that child is like really naughty and always breaks his favorite things and writes bad words on the walls of his house.
For more information and the link to the live event, please visit our USD 259 Virtual Author Visit WebsiteJANUARY 31 - Kansas Day Edventure
Recordings now availableHighlights include-
Live tours at the Kansas Museum of History in Topeka
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Famous Kansans
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Kansas Symbols
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A walking tour of the Kansas Capitol Building
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Information about an archaeological study happening at the Brown vs Board of Education in Topeka
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Cheyenne Bottoms Kansas Wetlands
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Prairie Ecosystem
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And more
Kansas Day Edventure Website
February 25 Black History Month Edventure
Recordings of our PK-12 Virtual Field Trips and Guest Speakers celebrating African American achievements and contributions throughout history are now available.
Black History Edventure Website
MARCH 23 - Women's History Month
Recordings of our PK-12 Virtual Field Trips and Guest Speakers celebrating women's achievements and contributions throughout history are now available.