ZOOMS Project Brings STEM Topics to Life

January 31, 2020

This year, Honors Biology students are taking part in the MN Zoo's ZOOMS challenge. The students were challenged to redesign the Nocturnal Hallway of the Tropics Trail at the Minnesota Zoo, The new exhibit needed to have space for the two-toed sloths and Burmese python currently in the space, as well as three new rainforest species of their choosing.

Back in October, students took a field trip to the zoo where they saw the space as it currently exists and took an Exhibit Design class, where they learned how zoos take into account the needs of the animals, zookeepers, and public in their design. 

Students then split into groups and spent time choosing animals, researching their needs, and developing exhibit design.

On January 30, students presented their exhibit designs in the Commons and were judged by teachers based on how well they took into account the needs of the various constituents. The final plans were expected to balance keeper, visitor, and animal needs while also highlighting important rainforest conservation issues. The best projects will go on to be judged by the MN Zoo in competition with other high schools.

"Through this project, students learned both about animal conservation principles and engineering design principles. There were a lot of constraints that they needed to work within, and consider how to create something that would work for all of the users," said Science teacher Mike Steineman '92.

"This project really challenged us to through things through and reassess our design," said Allie Sowatzka '22. "We really loved our first design, but we kept challenging ourselves to improve, and now we think our third design is so much better than we started with."

Students also learned about the habitat needs of various animals and how the zoo can help in conservation efforts.

"When you go to the zoo, it's not just about looking at the animals, said Chloe Anderson '22. "It's about being educated, and that's the first step to saving them.