Ms. Maciunas and Ms. Brown assisted us on the walk over to the BNC, about a quarter mile from the school. The students did well maintaining a safe, straight line.
Once we arrived, Andrew and Chelsea from the BNC greeted us and went over the day's planned activities, including collecting bugs in the meadow and harvesting the community garden.
We broke into 2 groups and headed toward the garden. On the way, we spotted bees pollenating a flower and passed several beehives.
In the garden, Andrew showed the class how to harvest green zebra sausage tomatoes.
The tomatoes were delicious!
Next Andrew asked the class to identify the parts of the plant.
Then it was time to switch groups. Off to the meadow we went to sweep for insects!
Before long, it was lunchtime, a picnic enjoyed outdoors. Afterward, the children viewed the insects they'd gathered and illustrated and labeled a drawing and wrote about them.
Finally, it was time to work together as a class to build a structure. Although the scene was a bit reminiscent of Lord of the Flies, everyone successfully collaborated to build a huge fort.
