INTO THE WILD
These students don’t just study ecosystems — they explore them.
The students arrive prepared “Ecosystems — and the living Located in Bristol, Silver Lake
to get messy. and nonliving things in them Nature Center is a popular
— are difficult concepts to destination for St. Anselm’s first,
Armed with nets and magnifying grasp just by reading from a second, and third grade classes.
glasses, they scrape the pond for textbook,” says third grade The center’s pond study allows
tadpoles. They peek under logs teacher Melissa Montag. students to collect aquatic
for snails. They marvel at the
array of wild birds, groundhogs,
and salamanders.
For the elementary students of St.
Anselm Catholic School, visiting
Silver Lake Nature Center is more
than a walk through the woods.
It’s a chance to get hands-deep in
organisms, seeing firsthand how
“Experiencing them
in person stimulates
all the senses,
which helps with
the students’
learning processes.”
the plants and animals interact to
create a healthy ecosystem.
Students also learn about
different types of habitats by
exploring the center’s wetlands,
forests, meadows, and open
waters. The center’s guides
explain concepts like biotic (living)
topics they’d normally study from and abiotic (nonliving) factors
the confines of their classrooms. while peppering in practical tips
— for instance, how to identify
different forms of poison ivy.
The trip also promotes
environmental stewardship. The
students examine the various
ways that humans can impact
each habitat. At the end of the
pond excursion, they return all
their captured critters back into
the wild.
4
Second grade teacher Theresa the field trip into her lesson on And though the field trip only
Dunn says her class w