Over the last few months, three classes at Friends School of Portland have teamed up with Falmouth Land Trust for projects and trail work on the Underwood Springs Forest Preserve trail network. Given that the Underwood trails abut our campus and our students use them on a regular basis for PE (and other) classes, this collaboration seemed like a natural fit! Rebecca Dugan FLT’s new Education and Outreach Coordinator, has coordinated these efforts, which include a plant identification project with Aliza’s 5-6 science class and a data collection project with both 1-2 classes. In Rebecca’s words:
We have been so excited to work with Friends School students and staff! It's so helpful to have students monitoring trails and reporting back what they find, whether that's an interesting plant or a bridge in need of repair. We also love getting kids out on trails and excited about nature since they are our next generation of stewards! Young people can be leaders in caring for the land and make a long-term positive impact!
In September, both Alex Perry, FLT’s Stewardship Coordinator, and Rebecca, met with Aliza’s science class to help them learn the importance of an ecological inventory, which they will work on throughout the year at the Underwood Springs property. Alex and Rebecca also explained what a land trust does, how they connect with people in Falmouth, and how the students’ plant-identification efforts will help support FLT’s grant-writing efforts.
The 1-2 classes will be stewards or “scouts” of the Underwood Springs trails this year. Once per season, students will walk the trails in small groups, collecting data about the condition of the trails – bridges that need repair, trail signs that have fallen down, and any other observations they have about the general state of the trails. The students kicked off this project with a visit from first-grade parent and artist, Ellie Barnett, to learn about the difference between scientific drawing and “regular” drawing. After each season’s walk and data collection – a combination of notes, drawings, and photos – students will share their findings with Rebecca and the FLT staff.
Although there are not currently any other volunteer projects at Underwood Springs, Rebecca says there will be in the near future so keep an eye out for future volunteer opportunities!