Scott Rockey and student Taryn Kayser, Elma Middle School
Welcome to the special student edition of Drops of Water! This school year, fourth through 12th grade students from 13 school districts -- from Aberdeen to Tumwater to Onalaska -- have participated in Chehalis Basin Education Consortium activities. Students were trained in water quality monitoring and other environmental science field skills. Students learned about stream chemistry and flow, habitat, weather, human impacts on the watershed, flooding, salmon recovery, riparian zones and general ecology. Many students also fine-tuned their artistic, observational and journal writing skills, and created beautiful works of art and poetry inspired by the Chehalis watershed.
Please enjoy this special student edition and discover how our local youth have "connected" to the Chehalis watershed and contributed to the long-term health of the watershed through their attitudes and civic action.
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This year, four students were selected by their teachers as Chehalis Basin Watershed Stewards in recognition of their exceptional efforts in protection of the Chehalis watershed.
"Bobbie Clark has shown great enthusiasm and interest in the water quality studies. In the field, she also displays great leadership skills," according to Mrs. Boyer, 5th grade teacher at Elma Elementary School.
"Lacie Wilson was selected because of the visual and informative science fair project that she did on fecal coliform," explained Mr. Woodruff, 7th grade teacher at Rochester Middle School. . "Fecal coliform is an important parameter tested in our water quality monitoring program. Lacie also shows great enthusiasm and excitement on being on the Chehalis River team," explained Mr. Woodruff.
Brendon Edwards was selected as a Chehalis Basin Watershed Steward because of his impressive science fair project on the relationship between turbidity and dissolved oxygen. His teacher, Mr. Woodruff, also commented that "Brendon is the ‘go to' guy in my Project Science class. He displays great leadership qualities. He's going to be one exceptional adult one day."
"Kimmie Cunningham's leadership and organizational skills with our hands-on and water quality monitoring activities have delighted me" said teacher Ms. Taylor, 9th grade at Willapa Valley High School. "For example, on one of our monitoring days it was pouring rain -- all of the other groups packed up and headed back to the bus. Not Kimmie or her group. Kimmie kept everyone organized and focused on completing their dissolved oxygen tests."
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This special student edition of Drops of Water features:
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Scott Rockey and student Taryn Kayser, Elma Middle School |
On a very, very rainy February 23rd day, more than 100 students, parent volunteers and teachers from Elma and Simpson Elementary Schools, Elma Middle School, and from Montesano and East Grays Harbor High Schools planted trees. The older students teamed up with younger students, planting 400 spruce trees along Vance Creek, a salmon-bearing creek, at Vance Creek County Park in Elma. The trees will eventually provide shade, help to stabilize the creek, and hopefully out-compete the invasive reed canary grass. Students from Jeff Sowers' and C.J. Russo's classes at East Grays Harbor High School will water the trees this spring and summer. Way to go students!
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Student delegates at our 5th Annual Congress were asked: "What would you say are the most important things that you have learned from your involvement in Chehalis Basin watershed studies/water quality monitoring activities this year?" Here are a few of their responses! You should look at your surroundings to find the solution.
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Each year, in affiliation with The Library of Congress Center for the Book, River of Words® conducts a free international poetry and art contest for youth on the theme of watersheds. The contest is designed to help youth explore their own watersheds, discover the watershed's importance in their lives, and express what they've learned, felt and observed in words and images. CBEC conducts a regional contest, "Words and Images from the Watershed: Washington's River of Words." This year, hundreds of entries were submitted. Included in this publication are the regional poetry and Washington state-wide artwork winners. Judging was conducted by poet Bill Yake and Educational Service District 113.
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Sometimes the rain falls elegantly down from the clouds, Sometimes the rain falls forcefully down from the clouds The rain can be as loud as thunder, The rain can be as quiet as a mouse, Now once the rain is on the ground, The rain is flowing gracefully in a puddle, Now that the sun has dried up all the rain, The rain will soon fall again another rainy day. Regan Wollen, 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi 1st Place Category II ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I start out as a seed, I will not be a weed, I grow and grow and grow, Soon my colors will show, Water me and see what I'M going to be, I might be a flower, I might be a tree, I will have colors that are bright, No matter what I am I will be a sight, Shyann Kilgore, 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi 2nd Place Category II ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When I walk outside I see the creatures that lurk around, I see the tree that branches reaches out like an umbrella to keep me safe, I see the berries that hang on bushes that are blue, I see the grass all nice and wet with dew, When I walk outside I see the worms that lie there like they are dead I also see the birds that fly above the my head, I see the holes that the moles dig below, I can hear the soft smooth winds that blow, When I walk outside I can see everything in nature. Regan Wollen, 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi 3rd Place Category II ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Salmon silky, petite, dashing, diving, swimming, wondering what will happen next, small fry! Tabitha Moyer, 4th Grade Olympic Elementary School Teacher: Mr. Waring 4th Place Category II ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ F is for the Fragrance flowers release, L is for Lilies so pretty and white, O is for the reaction of peoples – Oh, W is for Wonderful colors, E is for the Elegance flowers give to nature, R is for Rhododendron the state flower, S is for Sunshine that makes flowers grow. Shyann Kilgore, 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi 4th Place Category II ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Little salmon fry swimming on a bright day in calm water travel to the sea. John Marinez, 4th Grade Olympic Elementary School Teacher: Ms. Waring Honorable Mention ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Icy fingers trail over the ground. Everything they touch turns white, Spun out of delicate tendrils of ice. Leaves become tiny sheets of snow And blades of grass sparkle and glimmer In the soft sunlight of early morning. The puddles left over from yesterday's rain Are frozen over, Faerie skate-marks threading the surface In intricate designs. The sky is icy, cloudless blue, Beautiful in a frozen sort of way. The ground crunches, Accompanying the trills of a single bird. Overnight, The world has become a glittering wonderland. Kyrie Benson, 7th Grade NOVA School Olympia, Washington 1st Place Category III ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
Summer departed, Fall arrived. Turning colors red and orange. Each unique, floating and scampering. Random patterns. Threshed by wind. Shuffling rustling for simple delight. Crisp crunch beneath my feet. Under a beaming sun and tree. Kaylee L. Hartman, 8th grade Chehalis Middle School Teacher: Rachel Dorsey 2nd Place Category III ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sandpaper leaves. Tingly moss rapidly growing. Pinecones like porky pine quills. Windy sensations dance around the ears. Nude branches shiver with transparent goose bumps, From the deafening wind. Majestic raindrops helplessly race. Breaking into millions of pieces. The innocence and sobriety. Indescribable beauty. Leaves gallantly sweep the forest, Leaving only the new to be discovered. Araceli Mendez, 8th Grade Chehalis Middle School Teacher: Rachel Dorsey 3rd Place Category III ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The river so swift, The river so light, The right of fish and every last Sight, The river of one, The river of all, The river of spring, winter and fall, The river of love, The river. Ty Shephard, 8th Grade Onalaska Middle School Teacher: Jan Lindsell Honorable Mention ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A vast sea of rolling spruce, pine and maple At one time, luscious and green Another, withering and orange. Low tide comes as leaves Fall, High tide returns as leaves grow, Swept in by the tide, Spring starts anew. Chris Allen, 8th Grade Chehalis Middle School Teacher: Elizabeth Garrett Honorable Mention ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Patches of light glisten silently through the trees. A faint breeze rustles the outstretched leaves. The aroma of tender green grass permeates the air. Serene April flowers unfurl from their hiding places. Soft footsteps whisper to the sodden moss. A stag approaches the brook. His velveteen muzzle interferes, sending tiny ripples through the water. Skiers skim the surface and a nearby frog lies motionless waiting for a meal. The stag quenches his thirst and gazes off into the distance, consumed by tranquility. Tara Lindsey, 8th Grade Chehalis Middle School Teacher: Rachel Dorsey Honorable Mention ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
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On March 29th, our Fifth Annual Congress was conducted at Grays Harbor College in Aberdeen. More than 150 student delegates from schools throughout the watershed (and beyond) -- Willapa, Montesano, Mary M. Knight, Elma, Rochester, Centralia, Boistfort, and Onalaska – met with resource professionals to share and analyze their water quality data, participate in hands-on workshops, and to develop plans to improve the health of the watershed. Resource professionals from Grays Harbor County, Weyerhaeuser, Grays Harbor College, Washington State Departments of Ecology and Fish and Wildlife, the Chehalis River Council, the Chehalis River Basin Land Trust, the City of Centralia, WSU Extension, and Thurston County, facilitated "State of the River" sessions and the hands-on workshops.
Thanks to all of our partners for helping to provide an exceptional learning experience. "The kids get to see actual scientists applying what they have been learning all year," teacher Cassie Deitz from Washington Elementary School in Centralia commented at the Congress. Angie Salvaggi from Elma Elementary School said "My students learned insights on how they can do small and big things to make their environment better."
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Devin Kelly with volunteer Arnie Martin, Central Elementary, Hoquiam |
This year CBEC was awarded a "Nature of Learning" grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The purpose of the grant is to "connect Grays Harbor County youth with their local wildlife refuge, Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge, to learn about the importance of the estuary to migrating shorebirds." Led by Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge Americorps volunteer extraordinaire Jaclyn Schlindwein, partnerships were strengthened between the wildlife refuge, Grays Harbor Audubon Society, Grays Harbor College and CBEC to provide classroom presentations and field studies to the refuge.
Here are thank you letter excepts received from participating students by Lorena Marchant, Grays Harbor College's Model Watershed Education Specialist (original spelling preserved):
Dear Mrs. Marchant,
Thank you for coming to our class!
You tot me that shor birds travel for miles and miles to get to Hoquam!
You shod us that shorebirds came here at Hoqme and they eat here. I got smoter!
I learnd that the shorebirds are very tired when they get here
You tot us to keep a habitat for shorebirds
I love shorebirds!
Shorebirds are speshol!
From: Mrs. Parker's First Grade Class, Emerson Elementary School, Hoquiam Mrs. Boerner and her fourth grade class from Central Elementary School, Hoquiam visited the refuge on April 26th. Field study observations and comments:
The flock of shorebirds "looked like smoke rising" said student Tisha Haskell. Jake Nordberg thought that the flock of shorebirds looked like "giant waves."
Mindy Jones noticed that the "song sparrow sings in a pattern."
After observing the birds feeding in the salt marsh, volunteer guide Arnie Martin commented that he has a cousin whose last name is Saltmarsh, and her nickname is "Duck."
"I enjoyed learning about all the different birds that are in our town. Seeing them made me better understand the lessons that Jacquelyn taught us," wrote Brian Landin.
Cristian Huff noted that "I had never been to the Estuary and probably would not have been able to, but our teacher and Jacquelyn got a bus for us and educated us about the birds."
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We, the students of the Chehalis River Basin, hereby proclaim our commitment to improve water quality in the Chehalis Basin by engaging in and promoting the following activities:
Congress delegates make recommendations to improve water quality |
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Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New What is the Chehalis Basin Education Consortium?The Chehalis Basin Education Consortium (CBEC) is a partnership comprised of Educational Service District 113, school districts, the Washington State Department of Ecology; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Grays Harbor College, Grays Harbor National Wildlife Refuge, the Chehalis Basin Fisheries Task Force, Grays Harbor Audubon Society, the Chehalis River Council and the Chehalis River Basin Land Trust. The primary goal of the consortium is "to improve student learning and community education in the region by linking Washington's Essential Academic Learning Requirements and assessments to environmental issues that are part of the Chehalis River watershed." This watershed approach can assist other school/agency partnerships in place-based, environmental education, monitoring, community involvement and service learning projects. If you are a 4th - 12th grade teacher interested in becoming involved with the CBEC, please contact Kathy Jacobson, CBEC Coordinator at (360) 464-6722 or kjacobson@esd113.k12.wa.us. Funding for CBEC and this special issue of Drops of Water has been provided in part through EPA Grant No. C9-00044903-0 to the Department of Ecology from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. |
Tara Lingsay 8th Grade Chehalis Middle School Teacher: Rachel Dorsey Grand Prize Winner |
Alexi Prante 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi Honorable Mention Categoy II |
Syann Kilgore 5th Grade Elma Elementary School Teacher: Angie Salvaggi 2nd Place Category II |
Daniel Lange 5th Grade Broadview Thomson Elementary School Teacher: Sally Solbery 3rd Place Category II |
Sara Couture 12th Grade Spring Creek Lodge Academy Teacher: Bruce Donaldson 2nd Place Category IV |
Courney Heise 11th Grade Spring Creek Lodge Academy Teacher: Jacqueline Rutzke 1st Place Category IV |
Jennifer Helvey 11th Grade Spring Creek Lodge Academy Teacher: Jacqueline Rutzke 3rd Place Category IV |
Jennifer Holmes 5th Grade Grand Mound Elementary School Teacher Kandy Elbert 1st Place, Category II |
Helenda Eitel 5th Grade Lakeside Middle School Teacher: Mark Shone Honorable Mention Category II |