Braving the cold, Pagosa Peak Open School students grades K-5 spent the day in the woods with Audubon Society Community Naturalist Keith Bruno and volunteers.
Students bundled up and hiked in, where they identified parts of plants, went on bug hunts, discussed the life cycle, created habitats and reflected on animal survival techniques.
“Every single student learned and experienced something new,” Rue Graham, PPOS’s 4/5 teacher said. “Despite the chilly temperatures and cloud cover during the day, we had an excellent time.”
First through third-graders had the opportunity to overlap their pollination project in the classroom with the work they did at the ranch with further study of insects.
“My favorite game was the insect life-cycle relay,” Kelle Bruno, PPOS’s 1/2 teacher said. “Students began the relay by climbing into a burlap sack (the egg stage), then they crawled to a blanket (larvae stage), wrapped up in the blanket (pupae stage), and quickly unwrapped themselves and jumped up and flew (adult stage) to a marker, then returned to the next member of the team. It was a fun way to remember the life cycle of an insect.”
The classes each had their day on the ranch, and small groups were supported by parent volunteers. Students said they enjoyed their group activities.
“We went on a bug hunt and found a huge black and orange butterfly,” Quinn, 9, said about her small group work. “It was a surprise to find it because it was so cold!”
Students look forward to more field work and time working with Audubon throughout the school year.
