Fourth grade classes were the first to put the new trail through the woods to good use as part of their unit on Virginia ecosystems. Each group got up close and personal with their small piece of the forest floor, sketching and labelling living and nonliving things they found in their plots. They plan to come back and do soil tests with the plots later in the year. The trail has been a work in progress since last year, and it's almost finished! We have an outdoor classroom, signs marking plants and trees native to Virginia, and a nice long cleared path all the way through the woods. One loop still needs some clearing, and we have a local boy scout working on bridges and mulching for the trail as part of his Eagle Scout project. Many, many thanks to the PTA Eco Committee, volunteers from the Kohls department store across from Fairview, parent, ecologist and cub scout leader Mary Benger, and boy scouts from troop 1346 and their families for helping create this awesome learning opportunity right in our backyard!
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| Fourth graders observing and recording. |
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| The woods next to school, before! |
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| Mulch by the truckload. |
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| Fourth grade studying Virginia ecosystems. |
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| We found all KINDS of interesting things clearing the trail. |
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| It's ready, come on outside! |
