What:
Thanks to Woodland Park Zoo and numerous private donors and corporate sponsors, about 30 students from Denny Community Center in Seattle will become a little wiser the “wild way.” Media are invited to attend both the classroom presentation and the field excursion. Wild Wise is the zoo’s first statewide outreach program designed to connect students with the wildlife in their own backyard. Through innovative programming, young people are encouraged to discover and explore the natural world around them.

The Wild Wise team will deliver a presentation to the 6th-8th graders, using a high-quality multimedia presentation with stunning wildlife imagery and a lively audio track, which takes the students on a virtual tour of Washington habitats. They will then lead the students on a short walk to Longfellow Creek Greenspace to look at the habitats within the park: forest, stream and meadow. The students will be given the opportunity to sharpen their observation skills using binoculars, magnifying boxes and field guides. They will also make sketches of what they’ve seen in their Wild Wise notebooks. In addition to learning about the animals they find, they will participate in a discussion about how they can make a difference with wildlife and habitats in their own neighborhoods.

When:
Wednesday, July 7
Classroom presentation: 1:00 – 1:45 p.m.
Longfellow Creek Greenspace excursion: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Where:
Classroom presentation: Denny Community Center at Denny Middle School. 8402 30th Ave. SW, Seattle, WA 98126. Field excursion: Longfellow Creek Greenspace is located at SW Thistle Street adjacent to Chief Sealth High School in West Seattle at 2600 SW Thistle Street.

Who:
6th-8th graders from Denny Community Center; Woodland Park Zoo Wild Wise staff.

Visuals:
Wild Wise staff delivering the presentation; students applying their new skills during a field excursion at Longfellow Creek Greenspace. Last year they saw hummingbirds, butterflies and lots of other insects. They also looked for signs of wildlife such as tracks, scat and feathers.

Info:
For more information about Wild Wise or the zoo in general, log onto the zoo’s Web site at www.zoo.org or call 206-684-4800 or 206-684-4026 (TTY).

Other:
On July 9, Wells Fargo presents: Woodland Park Zoo’s 28th Annual Jungle Party “Walkabout the Stars ~ Australia.” Each year, Jungle Party supports Woodland Park Zoo’s programs through the Fund-Our-Future Fund. The focus of the 2004 Fund-Our-Future is education and reconnecting children to nature through Wild Wise. Jungle Party funding will help to provide more than 13,000 children in 58 schools, throughout 50 school districts in 24 counties per year with a Wild Wise learning adventure. It will also allow a higher percentage of low-income students to participate in the program. Additionally, more funding will enable the Wild Wise team to develop more high-impact, multimedia and interactive presentations for the classrooms.

Jungle Party, the zoo’s premiere fundraiser and auction, transforms the zoo’s North Meadow into the sights, sounds and culture of the great country of Australia. The evening’s festivities include the opportunity to bid on several hundred exciting auction items and experiences, live entertainment, up-close animal experiences for patron guests and a gourmet sit-down dinner.

For more information about Jungle Party, visit http://www.zoo.org/jungleparty/index.html or call 206-733-9749.

Accredited by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, top award-winning Woodland Park Zoo is famed for pioneering naturalistic exhibits and setting a standard for zoos all over the world. With conservation, education and excellent animal care at the core of the zoo’s mission, the zoo is helping to save endangered species in Washington state and around the world including tree kangaroos, snow leopards, red-crowned cranes, African wild dogs, western pond turtles and Oregon silverspot butterflies. By inspiring visitors and others to care and act, Woodland Park Zoo is making a difference in our planet’s future.