Hooray for Kids!
Woods Become Science Classroom for St. Rita, N.O., Fourth-Graders

Last month, fourth-graders from St. Rita School in New Orleans, and their teacher, Marianite Sister Sharon Freidrich, spent three days in the woods of Jena Lafitte national Park to learn some on-site science lessons about the interconnectedness of all living things.

The curriculum called "Earthkeepers", was designed as a treasure hunt, complete with maps and a card from "EM - a fictitious scientist inviting the students to her leafy lab.

Fun, hands-on science activities were on tap throughout the three-day period. For a lesson on food chains, students were taught to think of every organism as either a "sun-muncher", a "plant-muncher", or an "animal muncher."

"My favorite part was being a munchline monitor," said DaShawn Harris describing how he and his classmates were given a "clicker" to tally how many different living things they spied from each of the three categories.

A scavenger hunt challenged them to find insects, seeds, feathers, and leaves, and to observe how these items moved through the environment. A "time Capsule" dig unearthed boxes containing rocks, fossils, and various man-made items, and asked students to speculate about how these items might have changed over time.

Upon their completion of the environmental science unit, St. Rita students will earn their designation as "earthkeepers" - people who understand how all livings things are tied together; spend time outdoors in the natural world try to do things that will not harm living things; and share with others the importance of protecting, understanding and enjoying nature.

The special curriculum was designed by T.R.E.E. (Teaching Responsible Earth Education), an Orleans Parish based initiative that uses outdoor classroom settings to teach science to fourth through eight-graders.