The Discovery Guide is intended for
anyone interested in understanding, preserving, and promoting
the heritage of the Allegheny Ridge. While it has been prepared
in a format that makes it useful to elementary or secondary
teachers, other educators will also find things they can use.
The guide can be used by any group leader, with homeschoolers,
scout troops, church youth groups, and even with adult education
programs and as activities for senior citizens. Staff and
volunteers at sites along the Ridge can also mine the Discovery
Guide for ideas and activities that may be incorporated into
interpretive programs. The Discovery Guide provides a process
that its users can follow to discover the diverse heritage
of the Allegheny Ridge.
The Discovery Guide can be an invaluable
tool for field-trip planning, but its real value lies in its
integration into the existing curriculum. Teachers can find
lessons here in all subjects that will stimulate an excitement
and intellectual curiosity for heritage that becomes part
of the student's everyday life. As part of a math lesson,
language exercise, or science experiment, students can learn
about local cultural, historical, and natural resources and
the legacy that has been bequeathed to them. They begin to
appreciate their role as stewards of this legacy, and to recognize
and respect it in the customs they follow, in the buildings
and structures of their communities, and in the other people
of the Ridge. They begin to understand that the experiences
of the people of the Ridge have had far-reaching influence,
and that they are the newest part of that experience.
We hope you will consider using the
Discovery Guide and that you will want to make it a permanent
part of your yearly curriculum.
