Bridging the Americas

Bridging the Americas / Unidos por las Aves is a cross-cultural environmental education program that links elementary school classes in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. with classes in Latin America and the Caribbean through an exchange of art work and letters that focus on Neotropical migratory birds.

This group of birds consists of over 300 species that breed in the United States and Canada and spend the winter months in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Since 1993, over 10,000 students from classrooms in the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, the British Virgin Islands, and Ecuador have participated.

Bridging the Americas / Unidos por las Aves is coordinated by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (SMBC) which is based at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

We are grateful to the following collaborators for their valuable assistance in involving teachers and their students in Latin America: Hacienda Merida (Nicaragua), Fundacion ProAves (Colombia), Pronatura Veracruz (Mexico), Shirley Brito of Escuela Lider Los Lagos (Costa Rica).

The goals are to increase environmental awareness, to instill an appreciation for migratory birds and the need to protect the habitats they depend on throughout the year, and to stimulate an interest in learning about other countries and their cultures.

All participating teachers receive a packet of teaching aids and information on migratory birds and their partner class's country. Each class in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. is matched with a class in Latin America or the Caribbean.

After learning about migratory birds as something special shared in common with their partner class, the children exchange drawings and letters which reflect not only what they have learned about birds but also information about themselves. Having students correspond with kids in another country where "our" birds go for part of the year brings the concept of migration to life in a meaningful way.

Letters sent to the partner class in Latin America or the Caribbean may need to be in Spanish. Teachers are encouraged to work with a volunteer from the school or community or with a high school Spanish class to translate letters written by individual students.

If no such arrangement is possible, the SMBC will translate a letter from the class as a whole to send along with the students' drawings.

Read the program guidelines

View table of contents for the 2009 Bridging the Americas Teacher's Manual

This is a flexible program in that teachers are free to adapt it to fit their particular situation. The only requirements are that you engage your students in learning about migratory birds and about your partner class' country and that you complete one exchange of drawings and letters with your partner class.

The birds and the cross-cultural connections provide themes around which you can explore a number of related subjects.

In addition to raising awareness of migratory birds and the need to protect their habitats, this program offers a fresh approach to teaching the required standards and beyond in geography, social studies, science, art, writing skills, and a foreign language (Spanish).

• Read an essay written by a teacher whose experience in the Bridging the Americas program inspired him to travel to Ometepe Island, Nicaragua with his family.

This program meets a variety of Standards of Learning for:

• Washington, D.C.
• Maryland
• Virginia

Bridging the Americas / Unidos por las Aves is open to elementary school teachers in Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C., Latin America, and the Caribbean.

There is a $25 participation fee payable after it's been confirmed that there is space available for you and your students in the program.

Checks should be made out to Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center and mailed to:

Attn: Mary Deinlein
Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center
National Zoo
PO Box 37012 MRC 5503
Washington, DC 20012-7012

Waiver Request

Because the program is subsidized by other funding sources, we are able to keep this fee to a small fraction of the actual costs, which include the materials provided to teachers, a classroom visit and presentation by an educator on our staff, international courier fees, and all that's involved in managing the logistics of partnering and communicating with classes in other countries.

We hope this fee will not prohibit any interested teachers from participating, and that it is viewed as a small price to pay relative to what the program offers. Any teacher who wishes to participate but cannot pay this fee is encouraged to submit a request for a waiver.

Signup Form

If you are interested in participating, please complete and submit the following application form.

Teacher Info

Name

Email

Phone

Fax

Briefly explain why you are interested in participating and what you would hope to gain.

School Info

School

Street Address

City

State

Zip Code

Student Info

Number of Students (approximate)

Grade (more than one may be selected)

1

2

3

4

5

6

For more information, contact Mary Deinlein (SMBC):

Email