Florida has a rich heritage and there is plenty of natural history to enjoy and be inspired by throughout Pinellas County.

The Weedon Island Preserve Cultural and Natural History Center, located at 1800 Weedon Drive NE, in St. Petersburg, FL, offers educational programs for kids and adults.

From March 4 through May 27, the Center is offering classes, with a new lesson every other Thursday, presented by a local archaeologist.  This free, after-school program is one that “kids and parents can really dig” (according to Andrew DeLong, Staff Writer, for the St. Petersburg Times).

Rae Harper, who is working on her master’s thesis in applied anthropology at the University of South Florida, leads the program, entitled “Project Archaeology: Investigating Shelter.” Her aim is to inspire students to think like an archaeologist by analyzing artifacts and re-creating archaeological sites using familiar materials.  Each lesson affords a different learning exercise related to archaeological research and how to apply that knowledge to an activity.  The lessons include hands-on training and discussion, with the goal of helping students hone their observational skills, use the concept of interference and learn to think critically about the past.

The program is free and is recommended for families with children ages eight and older.

It is Rae Harper’s hope, as an archaeologist, that students will “walk away with a better understanding and appreciation of archaeology, and if I do inspire them to become passionate about school, that would be great.”

Heritage and Natural History . . . It’s all here . . . in Paradise Found!

ABOUT THE CENTER

Weedon Island Preserve Cultural and Natural History Center lies within Weedon Island Preserve and is part of Pinellas County Department of Environmental Management’s Environmental Lands Division (ELD). The Center supports the applied management and ecological monitoring objectives of the division through educational programming and volunteerism. 

The education program at the Center interprets the natural, cultural and archaeological history of the Preserve through interpretive tours and hikes, education programs, exhibits and public outreach activities, presentations and workshops, and other events.

The three-story Center was designed with the help of Native Americans and keeps with their traditions. For example, the orientation of the Center in the Preserve is along the cardinal points of the compass (north, south, east, and west) with the entrance facing east.

A special curved wall is representative of the remarkable pottery of the early Weeden (alternate spelling) Island people who lived on the island some 1,000 to 1,800 years ago. Portions of the Preserve are on the National Register of Historic Places. 

K-12 Programs
Public, private and homeschool teachers find Weedon Island Preserve Cultural and Natural History Center and the Preserve wonderful alternatives to their usual classroom. The Center developed FCAT-approved curricula that broaden students’ knowledge about our coastal environment and the people who once inhabited the area. On-site teacher training can be arranged, as well as field trips for classes.

Information about Weedon Island Preserve Cultural and Natural History Center is online at www.weedonislandpreserve.org or by phone at (727) 453-6500.

CREDITS:  Information for this post provided courtesy of the Weedon Island Preserve website and St. Petersburg Times (Sunday, February 28, 2010, Neighborhood Section, “Kids Learn Basics of Archaeology Free”).