Early in June the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association hosted all 6th graders in Timberlane Middle School for three full days. Each student was there for one day, as they were for one day last fall.
The sessions were held in the year-old LEED platinum-certified Watershed Center. The building utilizes state-of-the-art technology, featuring interactive exhibits, a laboratory, classrooms, a GIS center and an array of sustainability features, highlighted on the Sustainability Trail.
The center is the home of the association’s activities, and a growing professional staff. Last week, it was also home for 276 Timberlane 6th grade students.
The association’s environmental education staff engaged students in lessons supporting their science curriculum and addressing the upcoming Next Generation Science Standards.
This was a return visit for the students who, in the fall, explored the Stony Brook through an inquiry-based lesson; built shelters as part of a survival lesson; a language arts tie-in, and developed enhanced observation skills through the arts.
This time, students planned and carried out an investigation to determine the best location to plant a native black gum tree. Students engaged in several key science standards practices, including analyzing and interpreting data and engaging in scientific argument from evidence.
After gathering data and examining soils, students determined which factors were most critical to their decision-making process. Based on this student process, six black gum trees now have new homes on the Watershed Reserve.
In another lesson, students learned about environmental stewardship through direct action. After learning about the natural history and environmental challenges of the monarch butterfly, students helped restore meadow habitat by planting milkweed plants, the host plant for monarch caterpillars and a valuable summer nectar source for butterflies.
Lastly, students participated in a scavenger hunt in the Watershed Center, discovering a range of features that decrease impact on the environment. Information gathered by teams of students was then used in a Green Jeopardy competition. Students finished by making pledges to live more sustainably.
Students pledged actions they could implement immediately to decrease their impact on the environment. Popular actions include conserving water and electricity, composting and growing food plants. They also made pledges for action in their adult lives. Beth Hooks wants to start a big community cleanup to keep the environment and waterways clean. Kolten wants to design green buildings as an architect. Anna Gebe wants to pass on her environmental knowledge to her children. Dean DiGiacomo wants to work at the Watershed Association.
Education Director Jeff Hoagland said, “The need for sound science has never been more urgent. Our job is to stir the sense of wonder and promote the processes of science, which result in the skills of critical thinking and problem solving. This is serious business, mission work, but it was a real joy working with the Timberlane community.”
