Real-World Science Research...from Kids

by Sarah Brooks

I spent last Monday and Tuesday in Seattle setting up our beautiful Art & Experience Auction items at Johnston Architects (don’t miss this cool event in Seattle if you are in the city on the 21^st!).  My drive home on Tuesday was long and slow, with torrential rains over Snoqualmie pass.  The sun started to shine as soon as I turned off Highway 97 and onto Highway 153, like I feel it so often does. 

Tired, I pulled into Twisp just in time to help set up for our First Tuesday for the night.  Little did I realize what an energizing evening it would be.  This was an unusual First Tuesday for us – we were turning over the reins to Methow Valley Elementary School students and their teachers to share experiences from their outdoor science expeditions last year.

In a new program designed to spark student’s interest in science and the natural world, last year Methow Valley  Elementary fourth graders spent two night at the North Cascades Institute’s Mountain School on Lake Diablo and fifth graders enjoyed a magical sailing science trip with Salish Seas Expeditions on Puget Sound. 

The trips sounded amazing – just the sort of thing that might get a young person thinking bigger about the world and their role in it.  On both trips, students were exposed to real-world science research and learned from top-notch science-educators. 

But, what really struck me was the joy exuded by the students.  They wanted to share every detail with us – from what they ate, to what it’s like to live on a boat with your classmates, to every tree they saw on the other side of the mountains.  Every aspect of the multi-day science trip seemed exciting, adventurous, and ultimately joyful…even if it was cold and wet and exhausting.

I wish the whole community could have seen this presentation.  There really is nothing more inspiring, nothing more hopeful, than listening to a whole crew of very thoughtful kids express enthusiasm, respect, and interest in the natural world. 

Methow Valley Elementary plans to do the two trips again this year, with new classes of fourth and fifth-graders.  I hope they’ll want to share their experiences with us again next year and I hope even more people will attend their presentations because you leave with a whole new sense of optimism about the future.

Sarah Brooks serves as Associate Director and realized the other day that she’s been with the Methow Conservancy almost 9 years now.  Wow!  Time flies when you are having fun!