All About Amazing Animals

Welcome to the weird and wild world of animals!  I have been a biologist for nearly 2 decades, and have always had a love for animals, big and small.  This course is an opportunity to share interests with like-minded students, as well as provide assistance to students who may struggle with biology.  We will discuss any and all types of creatures in the Animalia Kingdom (both vertebrate and invertebrate) in this course ranging from mammals, fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, mollusks, annelids and so many more.  We will learn things like evolutionary history, anatomy and physiology, origins of names, and ecology of the animal.

This course is student-led.  I will always provide a curated lesson detailing a particular animal or two per lesson, but learners are also encouraged to bring their own information or questions to our lessons so we can talk about things they are interested in at the moment.  

Example lessons might be:
Week 1: The uniqueness of an axolotl
Week 2: Why don't penguins fly?
Week 3: Yuck... blobfish
Week 4: What's the deal with the platypus?

This course is meant to foster active engagement in their world and encourage an interest in biology.  We will engage in a comfortable learning environment where students practice their social skills, including listening and speaking.  Students will use their critical thinking skills to engage in topics they are familiar with, as well as topics entirely new to them.  Any level of prior scientific knowledge is welcome!  Students are likewise encouraged to bring their own curiosities that could be discussed in future classes.