HMNs Help Provide Environmental Education to City 4th Graders

The Edith J. Carrier Arboretum’s Katie Rankin and Harrisonburg Public Schools’ STEM Director Amy Sabarre (with a grant from DCR) put together a wonderful program for all of the City’s 4^th grade classes. The watershed project was held at the arboretum on September 12 through 18, and there’s still one more day, October 10, to catch the last class. 

More than 500 4^th graders attended and visited each of these five different stations:

1) “Just Passing Through” – The kids, acting as raindrops during a storm, ran along a straight hose (which represented a straightened-out stream or ditch), a curvy hose , and a curvy hose with human “trees” and “shrubs” planted along the “stream.” Each time, the kids were timed – showing them how a stream in its natural state with curves and trees, slows down the water.

2) “Freddy the Fish” – Freddy, a fish cut out of a sponge, was living happily in a stream (actually a 2 gallon container) until he decided to explore the world downstream, where he encountered fertilizer, road salt, litter, acid rain, toxic waste, and oil dumped down a storm drain. Each time a pollutant was added to Freddy’s water, the kids shouted in unison “Oh no! Poor Freddy!!!”  Freddy dies, but the kids took home valuable lessons about stream pollutants and how to reduce them.

3) Scavenger Hunt and Stormwater Discovery Walk – The kids were given a form on which to tally all wildlife and pollution they observed, and to describe various pond and stream features, including riparian buffers and stream improvement measures.

4) The Shenandoah Valley Soil & Water Conservation District had an “erosion box” and provided a demonstration of runoff across various surfaces. They also had a rain barrel and described how they can help reduce runoff.

5) The City’s STEM director led a STEM project that challenged students to design structures and landscapes that provided optimal runoff reduction.

The following HMNs participated as “Station Leaders”: Ann Murray, Anthony Adamovich, Rob Beaton, and Dave Forrer.  JMU first-year Education students assisted at a couple of the stations. The activities were a lot of fun for the presenters, and the kids learned valuable environmental lessons from the experience – and yeah, they had a lot of fun too!

– David Forrer, Cohort VI, September 2023

Click on an image below to enlarge it and find a caption. Photos by Katie Rankin and Dave Forrer unless otherwise noted.