Over the last two weeks of October, fourth graders from Alvin Hatch, El Granada, and Farallone View Elementary Schools headed outside for their first Junior Land Stewards field trip of the year.
Their first job was to get a future garden ready. Using a technique called sheet mulching, students layered cardboard and mulch over their garden plots to smother weeds and start building healthy soil. It’s hands-on, a little messy, and the first step toward a space they’ll help bring to life when they come back to plant.
Then it was time to slow down and look closely. On a naturalist scavenger hunt, students searched for raptors, signs of fall, places where wildlife might live, and spots where animals might take shelter in the rain. They also looked for native and invasive plants, which they’ve been learning about in class, and many students can already name and identify quite a few. Along the way, they spotted Sierran chorus frogs, songbirds, and squirrels, along with hawks, harriers, and kites. It was a great reminder of how much life protected land can hold, and how much you can see when you stop to look.
Our high school Field Guides were incredible. They were engaged, encouraging, and true leaders from start to finish. For some, the day was also a homecoming. They got to catch up with their fourth grade teachers and remember their own JLS field trips from all those years ago. Not so long ago, they were the ones learning from the Field Guides. Now the next group of young land stewards is learning from them.
Thank you to our students, teachers, and Field Guides for a wonderful start to the year. We can’t wait to see these gardens grow!
Junior Land Stewards is made possible by the Granada Community Services District, the Maxwell Hanrahan Foundation, Coastside Gives, and Cabrillo Unified School District. We’re so grateful for their support.
Help us keep kids outside, learning from this land and caring for it. Your gift supports hands-on days like these for the next generation of land stewards.
