Westminster Woods Environmental Ed 2015

I hope everyone had a super relaxing weekend after our great adventure in the redwoods. What a fantastic trip! When I think back on the three days that I spent in at Westminster Woods with your kids, I’m amazed at how cohesively they approached their time together, and how enthusiastic and engaged they were in all the grand experiences that unfolded for us.

Here are some of my favorite highlights:

Check out those excited faces! Westminster Woods- Here we come!

Day 1 orientation and introduction to the incredible naturalists:

Just in case you didn't know... 3rd and 4th graders LOVE to climb!

We spent our first afternoon with naturalist Raven working on our observation skills. We played Eagle Eye in pairs. Students take a moment to observe their partner very carefully, then they secretly change three things about their appearance and see if their partner can identify the changes. After the warm-up, we went on an "observation walk". Raven had placed items that didn't belong in that ecosystem along the trail and we walked silently, trying to find those items.

Checking out the near-silence of a flapping owl's wing in the Nature Center. 

Working in our nature journals

Move-in time! 

 Here's a peak into the dining hall:

 Yesssss! Eat that broccoli!

 Hydration station!

 Cozied up for bed:

French toast day was a major hit at my table:

 The fungi, fire, bacteria, and invertebrate decomposer zombies attack during this great skit on the energy cycle:

On day two, we spent the bulk of the day with naturalist Duck Duck. I loved hearing my students when he asked them to share their favorite memories in nature. It was so cool to hear the range of moments that they held dear. Exciting encounters with huge creatures and sweet moments finding a perfectly round stone were shared and celebrated!

At the evening campfire we heard a Native American folktale about the shape of douglas fir cones. The next day we found a bunch on the trail and the students noticed them right way!

 Wild, wandering wilderness warriors!

So great to have Cecilia along on our big hike!

Checking out the teeny spider that I made friends with:

Every water break is an opportunity to build something cool:

When we heard a deer (probably!) in the woods, Duck Duck was inspired to take us off the main trail. We followed a narrow deer trail, contemplating how agile and athletic deer are to maneuver through terrain like that so gracefully.

No Devin! We're not tired!
Ha.

This trail got pretty darn steep at some points. What an adventure!

We made it to the water! Now let's find some crawdads!

 

After lunch by the creek, we took off our shoes and headed upstream.  This was absolutely one of my favorite parts of the trip!

When we got back to camp, we met up with the 1st and 2nd graders to make some nature art.

On Friday morning we headed down to the water for some stream ecology with Luna, Red Wing, and the 1st/2nd graders.

 Searching for benthic macro invertebrates:

 We found a dragonfly larvae!

 

All of the tables worked hard to have ZERO WASTE meals! These guys nailed it- perfectly cleared plates!

And most importantly of all, we feel more connected than ever! Go Team!

Thanks a million to everyone for making this possible. I'm especially grateful for Jen, Jenn, Astrid, and Karen for stepping up as chaperones!

Now I'm excited to be back in the classroom with the kids so we can continue to grow our community here on campus. We have so much inspiration to bring to Writers' Workshop and experiential contexts for math and science. Here we go!