Bringing thousands of students and citizens together with hundreds of scientists to explore a gorgeous national park is one awesome way to go about a BioBlitz.

But it’s not the only way!

The purpose of organizing a BioBlitz is to document every bit of life within a set parameter in order to understand that location’s biodiversity. This might include observing the magnificent redwoods of Muir Woods—and the earthworms that dig near it roots. It might include carefully peering under the leaves of kolea and kawa’u trees to find … spiders. It might include cataloging a large, invasive nutria or a tiny, new-to-science tardigrade.

But you don’t need a national park, thousands of people, or hundreds of experts to have a BioBlitz. You can host one with anyone, anywhere, and National Geographic has the resources to help you do that.

First, take a look at our BioBlitz Education webpage. Here you can find everything you might need to have your own BioBlitz in your backyard, schoolyard, or local community.

• First, use our collection of BioBlitz media to get students excited about discovering what lives and grows in their neighborhood. Watch clips from the 2012 BioBlitz in Rocky Mountain National Park. Or experience BioBlitz from the first-person perspective of 7-year-old Imani.

• Find out how to host your own BioBlitz with our easy-to-follow video guides: Host a Schoolyard BioBlitz and Do-It-Yourself Bioblitz.

• Then, plan ahead with activities grouped by grade levels.  The “Mapping Biodiversity” activity, geared for grades 3-5, gets students mapping their community’s biodiversity. “Introducing Biodiversity and BioBlitz” helps students in grades 4-8 get familiar with taxonomy. Use “Designing a BioBlitz Learning Experience” to recruit and support scientists, naturalists, and other expert volunteers to lead inventories that engage both students and community members in a fun, dynamic, participatory science learning and stewardship event for grades 4-12.

• Next, equip your students for the field with downloadable tools like the BioBlitz Pocket Guide and the Field Notes Datasheet.

• Finally, the BioBlitz Education page also directs you to other related resources, such as iNaturalist, the Encyclopedia of Life, and a wide array of media about BioBlitzes of the past, including interactive maps, articles, and one or two poems.

No matter what you do with your students, the point to remember is that a BioBlitz can happen anywhere. And in some way, it is even more special when students are discovering the vibrant diversity of life thriving in their very own community.

This blog post was written by former Nat Geo intern Rebecca Bice back in 2014, but gets you ready for BioBlitz 2016—mark your calendars for May 20-21.