The Plant Press

From The Plant Press, Vol. 25, No. 1, January 2022.

Science to Go features a lesson in botanical illustration

Alice Tangerini participated in on online STEM event, “Science to Go,” organized by Karen McDonald, Education Director at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) in Edgewater, Maryland. On December 8, 2021, Tangerini presented a drawing segment live to students on botanical illustration featuring the marsh plant, Lobelia cardinalis. She worked with color pencils on paper and referred to digital photos which were supplied to the students. The activity, presented in Spanish and English, uses common household items to understand how marshes work. Tangerini was joined by SERC scientist Genevieve Noyce. The lesson plan is available at <https://learninglab.si.edu/collections/science-to-go-marsh-plants-teachers-students/rtI92wVkAPgnCSBi>. 

“Science to Go” was created with the aid of grants by the Smithsonian Institution and the Smithsonian's American Women's History Initiative. The Science to Go project was designed to bring science to students, where they are, during the pandemic. Science kits were provided to students to use during live and recorded video. Each event featured a woman scientist at SERC or a scientific collaborator. Roughly 2,000 free kits were distributed to Anne Arundel and Baltimore public libraries, where students picked them up. The grants had also allowed SERC to host teacher professional development, offering kits to Prince Georges County Schools.