Molly & Emma's Field Trip to Metcalf Bottoms

Mrs. Collett's third-grade class took their first field trip of the year to Metcalf Bottoms Picnic area to meet with two park rangers for an environmental program on habitats and bio-diversity. They learned a neat song and dance about habitats--get them to demonstrate it. They became "soil scientists" and did a soil inventory in a stream environment (the other class was assigned another area--I can't remember what it was called, too busy taking pictures). We got the groups back together and compared inventories. Then the students were divided into groups to look for clues about an animal habitat. They couldn't tell the other groups the animal they had, but they had to flag clues in the forest about their animal. Molly and Emma were in a group with Erin and Megan and their animal was a crow. They had to put yellow flags on evidence in the control area that indicated that a crow had been there. Then they looked at the other colored flags and tried to guess what animals clues were left behind and what animal had left them. They really enjoyed this. We went back to the picnic area and had lunch. I had to leave early for a doctor's appointment with Dr. Huet. But after I left, they got to build a habitat of their own with trees, water, land and animals. I think they really enjoyed the trip and I could tell they had learned more about habitats than I knew when I was a freshman in high school. PHOTOS