Abstract:

In the Amazon cloud forest, there are not many opportunities for children and adults to access good quality educational and interactive experiences. In Oxapampa, Peru we are implementing a semi virtual educational theme park on renewable energies, biodiversity, cloud forest and water and plant music from a learning approach to nature and inquiry-based science. First, we consider that it is important to motivate and sensitize children and adolescents to nature through direct experience in the natural environment, taking care that it is an experience from pleasure, wonder, glare and observation, and then work the needed messages for environmental care. Our experimental design allows visitors to learn about their community's environment, ecosystem, science and renewable energy issues in a direct experience in the cloud forest. We create a design adapted to different age groups: 1. 4-7 years focused on fostering the pleasure of contact with nature; 2: 8-11 years focused on the development of an environmental identity as land managers and 3: includes adolescents from 12-16 and adults: focused on introducing environmental problems. The park includes 8 thematic stations (initial, solar energy, wind energy, hydropower, how do we do science?, forest and water, biodiversity and plant music) and is traveled by means of a circuit with audiobooks adapted to the age groups, which allows to have a leading thread for the route. The methodology includes learning through research by asking questions such as: How can you generate energy from nature? Can plants sing? Students will play an active role in their learning process by being involved in research through playful-artistic dynamics, oral storytelling, scientific experiments and the use of augmented reality. From the age of 8, augmented reality will be used in different stations of the theme park through an movil app which is in the process of programming that will allow to observe a model (previously monochrome) as animated with colors and sounds of nature. Each station will have its characteristic icon that will then allow to recognize it during the tour and with augmented reality activities directly related to each station. For example, the wind station will show visitors with a small mockup that includes a windmill and Near Field Communication (NFC) tags how many blows are needed to generate power for different uses. In the biodiversity station, an NFC tag will be focused that will simulate the forest floor and show through the application the connection of plants and mycorrhizals and the water cycle in the forest. Preliminary results: pedagogical design aligned with the national curriculum (inquiry-based science) integrating forest schools. Two stories designed for the park tour that allow you to connect the stations that are being transformed into audiobook. An augmented reality application in the process of programming. 8 themed stations designed and under construction. At the end of this stage, the route will be validated with focus groups of each age described.

Keywords:

Oxapampa, Perú, Amazonia, renewable energies, forest school, inquiry-based science.