Seventh Graders Explore Campus Biodiversity

Seventh graders at The Peck School are stepping outside the classroom to study biodiversity—the variety of life in a given environment—right on their own campus. Armed with iPads and the app iNaturalist, students are mapping out plants and animals they discover, identifying species, and recording data to create graphs that showcase Peck’s diverse ecosystem.

To collect accurate information, students measure sample areas, called quadrants, that are typically one or two square feet in size. Within these quadrants, they track the number and types of plants and animals they find. Already, students have documented a variety of grasses, trees, and even a few insects.

“You’d be surprised to see how diverse Peck is with plants and different species,” said seventh grader Dhilan S. ‘27. “We’ve found a lot of grasses and trees, and even a bumblebee.”

For many students, the project is just as much about the experience as the science. “I just like to get outside and explore rather than being in a classroom,” Dhilan added.

By the end of the unit, the seventh graders will compile their findings into graphs and data sets, gaining a deeper understanding of how biodiversity shapes their immediate environment.