Lincoln 5th, 6th graders wrap up school year with extended Field Trip

When I think of the last week of school, my mind instantly wanders to cleaning out lockers and classrooms, time spent signing yearbooks, talking about summer plans, or tying up loose ends and missing assignments.

This definitely wasn't the case for Mrs. Mannix and Ms. Spencer's 5th & 6th grade classes. Not even close. They took this time to plan an overnight outdoor adventure that would take them to the Raymond Ranch, a house originally built around 1917, on part of the Mannix Ranch.

This would be the end destination of a two-day schedule that had these students pulling out of the school yard on the big yellow bus Monday, June 3 around 8:30 a.m. and returning around 4 p.m. Tuesday.

What prompted these thoughts of an outdoor, hands-on learning adventure? It all started when Stacey Mannix learned about a grant offered through the National Wildlife Federation. With the help of 2nd grade teacher Mary Hillerman, Mannix filled out all the necessary paperwork and made the qualifying plans to be considered an Eco-Green School for the $1000 grant that made this adventure possible.

The wrap up to this grant took place on the last week of school, but the students have been participating in activities in and out of the classroom all year to enhance their learning about the watershed.

At school, they mainly focused on the curriculum for project-based activities from the Project WET Curriculum and Activity Guide. They focused on water and the water cycle in class, and attended a watershed day in Helmville on April 24 presented by the Clark Fork Water Education Program. While en-route to the Lewis and Clark Caverns May 23, the 5th & 6th grade students stopped at the Headwaters of the Clark Fork to discuss water quality, silting ponds, fish habitat, and water flow and turbidity. The Clark Fork River has its headwaters in the Silver Bow Mountains less than five miles from the continental divide and originates at the confluence of Silver Bow and Warm Springs creeks near Anaconda Montana. The knowledge from these experiences were then applied during hands-on activities at the ranch.

The first stop was at the beaver ponds just west of town. Beaver enthusiast Corey Ritter from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Missoula energetically led the nine girls and nine boys on a trek alongside Arrastra Creek. The kids saw firsthand where beavers build their tunnels into the side of the banks. They also got to touch remnants of beaver chewed trees, learn how they build their dams, mark their territory, the pro's and cons to the environment, and learned about beaver anatomy and digestion.

The next stop was at the Raymond House, where the kids quickly ditched their gear and gathered on the wraparound deck for a quick history lesson about the house and the ranch from Randy Mannix, who's in charge of all the timber operations.

Ada Smith, Randy's sidekick who comes to work at the ranch after obtaining her masters in timber management, also contributed to the conversation and answered questions about timber and plants and its importance in coexisting in the watershed.

Do you know how to age a tree without cutting it down? I bet if you asked a fellow 5th or 6th grader, you would get a pretty accurate answer.

After lunch and a break, the kids headed down to a stream for a presentation by Naomi Alhadeff of the National Wildlife Foundation out of Missoula. Alhadeff focused on aquatic macroinvertebrates and their importance in helping one rate the health of a stream. After breaking in groups and learning to identify and count species, the students were turned loose to net macroinvertebrates directly from the stream. They were taught the importance in handling and identifying them, returning them back into their habitat and how the presence of some of the species directly affects the health of a stream. I think if there wasn't a time frame, these 18 kids would have caught and released all day!

Two presenters from CFWEP followed Alhadeff. Chris Doyle and his summer intern Tom Dolan, a sophomore from Montana Tech, came heavily prepared with engaging and informative games. The kids built their own water flow maps using heavy brown paper and determined how they expected water would flow through them. They then waited in line to be sprayed with water to see how correct they were. They discussed native water uses and beliefs, water habitat and water quality.

Doyle also extended an invite to attend the 2019 Southwest Montana Fly Fishing & Conservation Camp. Applications are due by July 5 and can be accessed online at cfwep.org/flyfishingcamp. The two-night, three-day camp for ages 12-17 takes place at Camp Watanopa on Georgetown Lake. The cost is $75 and scholarships are available, but space is limited, so check out the website today.

Night chaperones Josh and Sue Lattin showed up in time for spaghetti and Josh, who works for the U.S. Forest Service Lincoln Branch went over reading and making maps, mapping and gps, and the government in our watershed.

A hike up to see the fish ladder followed dinner Monday night. Josh explained how they work and why it is in place on the stream. After returning to the house Sue supervised s'mores, and the students ran through a sprinkler to rinse off.

The next morning it was up early to greet the sun with a good breakfast. Elaine Caton from the Blackfoot Challenge, our first presenter, came to discuss the birds of the watershed and where they go in winter. We then went on a bird walk and did a sound map of all the birds we heard. Caton also provided binoculars for students to see birds up close.

Upon returning to the house, Lincoln Game Warden Ezra Schwalm spoke to the students about his job, how he became a game warden and answered about a hundred questions.

Afterwards students went to the lake near the house and used their macroinvertebrate knowledge to compare stream macros to lake macros. One last presentation by Randy Mannix followed lunch and clean up, before we headed back to school to catch rides home.

It was an amazing adventure of learning to round out the year. "Each and every kid had the look of pure joy on their faces from the moment we arrived, until the moment we left," Sue Lattin said. "Campfires in the evening, eating s'mores and early morning breakfast on the deck overlooking the Blackfoot River, is about as good as life gets!"