What Is BioSITE?

That 4th and 5th grade students could engage in authentic scientific research was a revolutionary idea in 1993, but Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose garnered the support of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and matching funds from Cisco Systems, Inc. to create BioSITE (Students Investigating Their Environment).

Through the BioSITE program, nearly 1,000 students per year in the San Jose Unified and neighboring school districts are involved in comprehensive environmental service-learning at study sites in and around the San Jose area.

Inquiry-Based Science

BioSITE is based on the belief that through the process of scientific inquiry all children can successfully grow and learn to make sense of the world in which they live. Designed to build knowledge and process skills in science, BioSITE offers students the opportunity to engage in real world citizen science, vividly demonstrating the relevance of science to their lives.

As students explore and observe their environment, their experiences are grounded in authentic research and water quality monitoring projects. Data collected includes readings for Dissolved Oxygen, pH, Temperature, Dissolved Solids, Turbidity, Rate of Flow, and River Height.

Curriculum

The BioSITE curriculum is adaptable and may be tailored to suit specific field sites or educational goals. By adhering to core principles yet maintaining a flexible approach to implementation, the BioSITE model is responsive to changing standards and evolving needs.

Elementary students in BioSITE work in teams throughout the school year with trained mentors from our partnering high schools. Fourth graders benefit from the individualized attention and hands-on opportunities of small groups while high school students build valuable leadership, mentorship, and science skills. In addition to water quality monitoring, students engage in a variety of field-based science activities throughout the school year including learning about local plants and animals and how to promote healthy waterways.

Community Partners Past and Present

Adopt-A-Watershed Program

California State Department of Forestry

City of San Jose Environmental Services Department

Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Guadalupe River Park Conservancy

Kids in Creeks Program

Lawrence Hall of Science

Marine Science Institute

S.T.E.P. (Salmon and Trout Education Program)

San Jose Unified School District

Santa Clara County's Urban Non-Point Source Pollution Prevention Program

Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society

Santa Clara Valley Water District

Save the Bay

Ulistac Natural Area

Youth Science Institute

Generous Supporters through the Years

Agilent Technologies Foundation

Cisco Systems, Inc.

City of San Jose Watershed Grants Program

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

Howard Hughes Medical Institute

James and Pam Patterson

Lucent Technologies Foundation

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation

Oracle

Robert Brownlee Foundation

Santa Clara Valley Water District

State Farm Youth Advisory Board

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