Sandia Mountain Natural History Center

The Sandia Mountain Natural History Center is run by the museum along with Albuquerque Public Schools. It is located on land owned by APS in Cedar Crest, NM. Their environmental educators create and lead ecology programs for 5th graders, as well as other grade levels and the general public.​ They have created a "Virtual Field Trip", "Quick Trips", and "Ecology Q&A" videos to learn all about Sandia mountain and other New Mexico ecosystems.

Quick Trips

Another series takes you on quick trips around small areas in nature: 

Follow the SMNHC YouTube channel to find out about new Quick Trips

Virtual Field Trips

The SMNHC Virtual Field Trip is a series of longer lessons created for APS @Home during the Covid-19 shut-down as a virtual alternative to the Center's on-site Ecology Field Program. Each video lesson is 15-30 minutes long and aligned to Next Generation Science Standards for 5th grade.

 The lessons cover topics in-depth, include lots of visuals, and provide hands-on activities for students to do. Lesson topics include understanding abiotic and biotic, producers (leaves), consumers (scat, skulls), decomposition and soil, and ecosystem change over time. The series is intended to be watched in order, and it culminates with a review and final project video.

Ecology Q & A

Ecology Q & A videos are of an SMNHC educator answering questions submitted by 5th graders about fungi, consumers (animals), and what it's like to work in an environmental career. Email fiana.shapiro@state.nm.us to submit your own questions.

• For printable activities for further ecosystem exploration, please check out their website at: https://sites.google.com/a/aps.edu/smnhc/teacher-resources/curriculum
• To subscribe to the SMNHC youtube channel and stay up to date on all their new videos, please follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/user/smnhc1