Workshops and Programs Offered for Children & Adults

Workshops Offered for Children

David’s walks include immersive activities that engage both kids and adults. Children often delight in collecting treasures they encounter for the first time—brightly colored leaves, mica and quartz crystals, acorns, walnuts, flowers, seeds, and aromatic plants. In spring, they’ll find the first leaves and blossoms; in fall, the last brilliant leaves.

Gathered around campfires or sitting stones, we share observations of flora and fauna, as well as our collective cornucopias of stories, folklore, jokes, and poetry. Through these activities, children build a sense of place and connection to both the natural world and to the Indigenous Matinnecock people who once inhabited Port Washington.

Raising and Releasing Monarch Butterflies!

To promote student educational advancement, students will raise and study Monarch butterflies in the classroom with activities that will help them to

develop observational and record-keeping skills as they learn more about the environment. Monarch migration is one of the wonders of the animal kingdom.

These fragile creatures travel thousands of miles and the full migration cycle from Mexico to northern New England and back takes four generations, with each

generation travelling to areas they have never seen before. This is a powerful unit that integrates lifecycles into seasonal patterns and exemplifies Earth systems

science. Students will receive carefully selected student readings about Monarch butterflies that instill a curiosity about the natural world and help students make

links between Monarch butterflies, the local environment, and other disciplines including science, art, and language arts.

Monarch migration is one of the wonders of the animal kingdom.

Throughout the growing season, we observe, collect, and rear monarch butterflies from egg to caterpillar, chrysalis to adult—helping this endangered species survive. David Jakim founded and directs the NYC Metropolitan Monarch Alliance and Long Island Monarch Butterfly Alliance (since 2015). Learn more on the Long Island Monarch Alliance website.

Workshops: Citizen Science & Exploring Earth as a System

This workshop is geared for adults. Learn to use various mobile phone citizen science applications to help inform scientists about plants, animals, climate change to inform conservation efforts. David Jakim’s workshops connect citizen science to the exploration of Earth as a System, contributing to the environmental education and environmental literacy for participants. To be expanded upon in Spring, 2026.

Pond Life

This workshop is geared for participants of all ages. At this workshop we will collect pond samples with dip nets to encounter the little-known worlds of invertebrates, amphibians, fish, amphipods, and bryozoans—including frogs and frog eggs, dragonfly nymphs, American eels, mummichogs, aquatic beetles, shrimp, snails, and countless others. Similar explorations are done along coastlines via seining. Together, these findings tell the story of a pond’s origin, land-use history, disturbances, pollution sources, and ecological health. To be expanded upon in 2025.

Because ponds often collect runoff from fertilizers, pesticides, and septic systems, assessing pond life helps us propose community solutions to protect aquatic ecosystems.
📍 Next Pond Life study: Baxter’s Pond, Port Washington, Saturday September 20th, 10 AM.

Winter Animal Tracking

This workshop is geared for participants of all ages. In winter, we track footprints of fox, deer, coyotes, and other animals to uncover their habits and seasonal adaptations. To be expanded upon in 2025.