In order for participants to be certified, they must meet the following requirements:

• 40 hours of instructional time (class sessions and field trips)
• Read the course textbook, The California Naturalist Handbook, and the relevant publications from the California Naturalist Publication Series
• A nature journal entry for every field trip
• Participation in a class participatory science project
• Record at least 10 observations on iNaturalist in a class iNaturalist project
• Complete a Stewardship Project (including 8 volunteer hours of designing, preparing, and implementing the project as well as presenting the project to your course instructor and cohort)
• Record eight Stewardship Project hours on the Volunteer Portal

In addition, all participants are required to fill out and submit these forms by the first class:

• Emergency Contact form
• Waiver of liability
• Photo release

We employ a somewhat different approach to homework. The intention of this approach is to foster greater engagement with the course material and cultivate wonder and curiosity. You are also encouraged to review the standard study questions prepared by the UCANR California Naturalist Program and request instructor clarification of anything you’re unsure about. You may opt to answer and submit these standard questions for each chapter instead of the other assignments. 

For each class, we recommend engaging with the reading by noting:

• Two things that caught your attention. What interested you? Why?
• Two questions that come to mind about the material. What are you curious about?
• One or two things you’d love to share with someone. Share it if you can!
• Was there anything that was confusing, or about which you’d like more info or clarification? Write down questions to bring to the speakers for next class.
• Additional questions could include:
  • Any questions you have for the speakers for next class. Bring to class. 
  • Submit something from your journal, or about your journaling experience, if you wish.
• Ask yourself, “What has worked well so far? Are there opportunities for change?”

Instructors will request samples of your journal as part of homework assignments. In your journal:

• Observe and record your experiences in nature! See the Journal section for more information.
• Optional questions:
  • Research answers to the questions you had about the reading materials or something you observed in nature. Remember to use people as resources!
  • Review the standard homework/study questions prepared by the UC California Naturalist Program. You may request instructor review of anything you’re not sure about. This PDF contains study questions for all the chapters in the textbook: Cal Nat Handbook_All Chapters_Questions and Study Guide.

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Submit completed homework to cnssi@sierrastreamsinstitute.org. Attach your completed homework or paste it into the body of the email. Submissions WILL ONLY BE OPENED IF they meet these criteria:

Create a new email with subject line: CNat-Class x-FirstName LastName. For example: CNat-Class 1-David Attenborough.

See below for a link to the PDF or Word Document with those questions for all the chapters. If the PDF does not download properly, please email cnssi@sierrastreamsinstitute.org and we’ll send it to you via email. 

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Class 1: Introduction to Natural History and Course Administration

Reading: Chapter 1 – California Natural History and the Role of Naturalists
Word document: Homework_Chapter_1
PDF: Homework_Chapter_1

Optional Chapter 1 Summary Slides: View PDF here: Biodiversity_and_bioregions

Read “Natural History of the Sierra Nevada” ~ This is the first in a UCANR publication series for the California Naturalist program about each of California’s bioregions. It’s a 12MB (fairly large) PDF document, 19 pages. Info here: https://sierrastreamsinstitute.org/cal-nat-resources/

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Class 2: Geology, Climate and Soils

Reading: Chapter 2 – Geology, Climate, and Soils
Word document: Homework_Chapter_2
PDF: Homework_Chapter_2

Optional Chapter 2 Summary Slides – View PDF here: Geology

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Class 3: Interpretation, Collaboration, & Participatory Science

Reading: Chapter 8 – Interpretation, Collaboration, and Citizen Science
Word document: Homework_Chapter_8
PDF: Homework_Chapter_8

Bring to class a 1 paragraph description of your Stewardship Project

Create an account on the iNaturalist website http://www.inaturalist.org

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Class 4: Plants

Reading: Chapter 4 – Plants
Word document: Homework_Chapter_4
PDF: Homework_Chapter_4

Optional Chapter 4 Summary Slides – View PDF here: Plants

Prepare Draft Stewardship Proposal Form:

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – PDF

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – Word

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Class 5: Water Resources

Reading: Chapter 3 – Water
Word document: Homework_Chapter_3
PDF: Homework_Chapter_3

Review Stewardship Proposal Form (Does not need to be completed for this class!!):

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – PDF

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – Word

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Class 6: Forests, Woodland, and Range

Reading: Chapter 5 – Forest, Woodland, and Range Resources & Management
Word document: Homework_Chapter_5
PDF: Homework_Chapter_5

Optional Chapter 5 Summary Slides – View PDF here: Forest management

Stewardship Proposal Form Due This Week:

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – PDF

Stewardship Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI – Word

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Class 7: Energy & Global Environmental Issues

Stewardship Project due

Upload an observation to iNaturalist if you have not already done so

Reading: Chapter 7 – Energy and Global Environmental Issues

Word document: Homework_Chapter_7
PDF: Homework_Chapter_7

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Class 8: Flex Week

Submit a sample from your Journal if you have not already done so

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Class 9: Animals

Reading: Chapter 6 – Animals
Word document: Homework_Chapter_6
PDF: Homework_Chapter_6

Optional Chapter 6 Summary Slides – View PDF here: Animals

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Class 10: Stewardship Project Presentations and Graduation

• Complete Course Evaluation

One of the California Naturalist course requirements is the completion and presentation of a Stewardship Project. Participants choose a topic of interest to explore in greater depth, guided by the expertise of community scientists. The expected time commitment is about 8 hours, including the preparation of the final 5-minute presentation.

You can see a list of ideas for potential projects here. These are merely suggestions for your project, not limits!

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A great way to choose a topic for your Stewardship Project is to ask yourself questions such as…

• What fascinates me?
• What have I been wanting to learn more about?
• What have I learned in the course so far that I’m excited and curious about?
• What aspect of local science, nature, or habitat intrigues me?

A Stewardship Project can be something that launches you into meaningful volunteer work far beyond the end of the course, or it can be a self-contained exploration of something you just wanted to learn more about. It can also be about something you’re already involved in, allowing you to deepen your knowledge. The main thing is to have fun!

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The following are resources to help guide you in choosing and completing a Capstone Project.

Stewardship Project Overview

Capstone Presentations: Helpful Hints

Capstone Project Overview & Guidelines

Capstone Proposal Form for Cal Nat at SSI 

Keeping a journal is a key to becoming an engaged and observant naturalist. There are many ways to observe and record your experiences in nature. Below are a few ideas to spark your imagination and strengthen your naturalist skills.

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OBSERVATION & JOURNAL WRITING

• Grinnell Method journal format. See California Naturalist Handbook, Chapter 1, pages 16-19. You can look at Joseph Grinnell’s and other historic journals as well.
• BOWLING Nature Observation Activity This activity is a variation of one created by naturalist John Muir Laws known as The Three “I”s. I notice…I wonder…It reminds me of…
• Sit Spot (also Place In Nature or PIN)
• Choose one thing to observe for an entire week or over the whole course. Observe it using a variety of methods and see how they compare.
• Drawing. John Muir Law’s website have an excellent section on drawing and also publishes several books on nature journaling and drawing
• Photography
• Sound recording and/or sound maps
• Perception map. This variation of a sound map include all senses, including things you “feel.”
• Sit, or walk intentionally and more slowly, and observe what comes into your awareness.
• Contribute iNaturalist observations or phenology observations with Nature’s Notebook.
• 365 journal. Create a long-term record of things you observe on different dates of the year. For example, these can be sheets of paper that can go in a binder, one page for each date. It can also be created electronically.

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INQUIRY

• Consider objects, organisms, and environments from different perspectives, both literally and figuratively.
• How does your inquiry and exploration change with the questions you ask?
• How do different approaches inform each other?
• What is it?
• Who are you?

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CULTIVATING THE SENSE OF WONDER & SOLID SCIENCE

Kenneth S. Norris (1924-1998) or the “Professor of Wonderment,” was a renowned conservationist, naturalist, and professor who is well known for his ground-breaking research on dolphins and whales. You can find more information about his legacy and teaching philosophy in the links below.

• http://norriscenter.ucsc.edu/about/ken-norris/index.html
• http://norriscenter.ucsc.edu/about/ken-norris/teaching-philosophy.html