Educational Opportunities at Big Bald Banding Station

Big Bald Banding Station (BBBS) volunteers help to educate the public about songbird migration and ecology each autumn. Hundreds of Appalachian Trail hikers pass through the Big Bald Banding Station and may have the opportunity to release migrating songbirds or see a bird of prey up close. High school biology students from area schools, teachers from the NC Center for the Advancement of Teaching, and local bird clubs have also visited Big Bald for a hands-on experience. Formal visits by local elementary school students were an educational highlight in 2009.

Student helps release slate-colored junco

Southern Appalachian Raptor Research (SARR) visits public schools in the TN/NC mountain region and beyond to raise the raptor awareness of area students. Formal classroom presentations with possible follow-up visits to the Big Bald Banding Station have been conducted for a number of schools over the past several years. Click here to view 4th-grade student work created during a collaborative Bird Unit between Evergreen Community Charter School in Asheville and SARR. For information on similar opportunities please contact us.

Click here to view more student work.

Gardners students observe Tufted Titmouse
during school visit from SARR

Biology students from East Rutherford High School visit BBBS

NC teachers visit BBBS during Migration Seminar at NCCAT