BOICEVILLE, N.Y. — The pandemic has forced outdoor and environmental educators to deliver coursework online instead of on field trips and school grounds. But many educators and students would agree, nothing can replace a well-designed outdoor learning experience that involves directly interacting with local watersheds and natural areas.
A youth education program delivered by the Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program in Ulster County’s Onteora Central School District has found new ways to provide watershed-based science education to elementary students. Youth Educator Matt Savatgy is working directly with teachers to deliver entertaining natural history explorations via Google Classroom “meets” and to suggest learning expeditions closer to their home.
The work began last fall when Savatgy, who works for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County, started joining online science sessions at the invitation of classroom teachers to cover a wide range of watershed-related topics. The Onteora Central School District is situated in the beautiful and historic upper Esopus Creek watershed. The watershed is known for fast-running streams that provide clean drinking water to over 9 million New Yorkers and a historic trout fishery. But the watershed is simply home to about 600 Onteora elementary students trying to learn earth science during the pandemic. With Savatgy’s help, teachers are able to deliver science curriculum that is directly relatable to the Ashokan Watershed, particularly in the fourth grade.
Savatgy uses short video clips, lots of back-and-forth discussions, demonstrations, specimens from his extensive natural history collection, and games to help students grasp required scientific concepts. Bennett Elementary School Teacher Elizabeth Lefferts says, “My students eagerly look forward to each of our science sessions with Mr. Savatgy and the interactive activities they know are awaiting them.”
As a way to extend learning beyond the online classrooms, students are provided with video links and activity resources for them to try at home while exploring their local outdoor setting. The support has made it easier to teach science at the elementary level. According to teacher Liz Corsitto, “This year has been difficult to navigate in terms of teaching and learning virtually. Matt has stepped in to encourage our students to still love science even though it is being delivered virtually and to get involved in the science that surrounds them at home.”
Students were recently asked to explore their yards and neighborhoods for signs of winter animal activity and to identify the ways that animals can respond during the colder months. This activity led to a discussion about the adaptations that some animals have made to survive during difficult times. One student suggested that was like the changes we have all had to make to deal with the pandemic. Students will soon be investigating local streams, observing and measuring weather, and looking for evidence of erosion.
The Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program has also worked during the pandemic to offer in-person stream and watershed programs that use outdoor spaces. Several programs have operated with strict safety protocols in place, including a “Watershed Detectives” afterschool program. The coming year will continue challenging teachers to find new ways to deliver outdoor education about the environment.
The stream program plans to develop additional online curriculum resources for teachers. Other programs might include the annual Stream Explorers Youth Adventure at a local outdoor education facility and stream walks that involve interpreted traipsing on trails near Catskill streams. If all goes well and local Covid-19 infection rates are low this summer, the program hopes to offer the most immersive experience of all – snorkeling in an Ashokan watershed stream.
To learn more about these programs and AWSMP, visit ashokanstreams.org.
–Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County
Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program
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