Stars and STEM Stories
GLOBE United States: Alaska Primary School Students Take Green-Down Data Collection Seriously and Share Findings at Regional and Annual Meetings
In the fall of 2024, 336 of the 360 K–5 students at Pearl Creek Elementary in Fairbanks, Alaska, collected over 660 green-down measurements for the North American Phenology Campaign. This was by far the highest number of green-down data points collected in North America for the campaign.
A student holds a GLOBE Plant Color Guide while another student writes their observation on the green-down data sheet.
Students went outside 61 times, in all weather conditions, and monitored 73 trees from four different species. They selected two native species (Alaska birch and Bebb’s willow) and two nonnative species (chokecherry and crabapple). This allowed the students to compare how native and nonnative species respond to changes in their environment. Students also compared across multiple years of data.
GLOBE Alaska students hold a tree leaf next to a GLOBE Plant Color
Guide to observe color changes with the
GLOBE green-down protocol.
In the past 5 years, Pearl Creek Elementary has collected 1,352 green-down measurements through a partnership with GLOBE Alaska and the University of Alaska’s International Arctic Research Center (IARC).
Dr. Elena Sparrow, director of GLOBE Alaska, commends the effort of GLOBE students, teachers, support staff, and the principal at the school. “Pearl Creek Elementary is the first urban school in the 27-year history of GLOBE in Alaska to implement GLOBE at every grade level and by nearly every classroom teacher. The school is committed to outdoor education, STEAM learning, and 21st century STEM skills.”
In 2023, with IARC’s support, a group of fifth-grade students attended the GLOBE Pacific and Northwest Student Research Symposium at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California, where they presented their phenology findings to fellow students and STEM professionals. The Pearl Creek fifth graders were the youngest students to present at the symposium, a testament to their impact as student researchers.
Pearl Creek Elementary students participate in a poster session at
the 2024 GLOBE Pacific and
Northwest Student Research Symposium.
Additionally, two Pearl Creek students helped deliver the keynote address at the 2024 GLOBE Annual Meeting in New York to a room filled with students, educators, and scientists from countries around the world, showcasing the work of the school internationally.
Pearl Creek Elementary students pose in front of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory sign.
Pearl Creek Elementary is to be commended for their many contributions for researching their local environment using GLOBE!
Pearl Creek Elementary research poster submitted to the 2024 GLOBE Pacific and Northwest Student Research Symposium.
Learn more about GLOBE United States.
Story and photos contributed by University of Alaska Fairbanks.