VALLEY CITY, N.D. (VCPSD) – On January 18, this year’s Valley City High School Sophomore Biology class began learning 10 common ND bird species per week. They continued for eight weeks, learning basic avian family characteristics and how to identify 80 bird species common to Valley City and Barnes County. Weekly practice quizzes were given, and on March 18, students completed a cumulative identification exam.
The top 15 scoring students received a special award for their dedication to this project. The top scorers (four this year) had their names added to the Ove Knudsen Memorial Bird Trophy. Mr. Knudsen was a well-known local wood carver and carved many bird figurines over his lifetime. The Blue Jay on the trophy was carved by Mr. Knudsen and given to class instructor, Randy Toppen, in 1972.
The project continues during the fourth quarter with a field research project involving students’ choice of research methods, but all projects involve identifying and studying birds in the field.
2021 Award Winners:
Ove Knudsen Award Winners – these students made perfect scores on all eight practice exams and recorded perfect identification scores on the final exam: (Pictured Left to Right) Tucker Johnson, Amelia Meester, Faith Peterson and Gabriel Little Dog.
All Award Winners (Pictured from left to right) Front Row: Tyana Judd, Tucker Johnson, Amelia Meester, Faith Peterson, Gabriel Little Dog. 2nd Row: Kassydee Anderson, Joesi Klein, Emmy Jones, Gabe Herzog, Jada Nelson, Abbey Thornton.
Back Row: Chelsea Urbano, Mitchell Broadwell, Aiden Jacobson, Ethan Bear.
