To carry on environmental stewardship, it’s important to get kids out in nature. Studies have shown that those who grew up with the outdoors as part of their lives are more likely to care about environmental issues and make eco-friendly choices. If those experiences in nature are fostered so that children learn to be curious and ask questions about the natural world, we can spur on a new generation of environmental scientists and advocates.
The Middleton Stream Team and the Ipswich River Watershed both recognize the need to connect younger generations with the natural world. To this end, Stream Team president Sandy Rubchinuk and I gave a series of presentations at Howe Manning Elementary School during the week of March 19th.
Sandy is well known by many of the students, having been their teacher at one time. She opened the presentations by stating that after her retirement she choose to focus her energies on something she was deeply passionate about: nature, specifically the Ipswich River. The students were shown a video addressing the 2016 drought. Using a map of the watershed, I presented how the water gets in and is then drawn out of the Ipswich River. We then covered the subject of groundwater, with a fun video, and showed photos of Middleton Pond, the town’s reservoir, as it was during the drought–barely a puddle.
A message we made sure to get across in each presentation was that the students have the power to help the river. Sandy gave a demonstration using sponges to show how our water usage impacts ground and surface water levels. The students could help these levels from dropping so quickly by doing things like taking shorter showers, or asking their parents not to water the lawn in the middle of the day. To the sixth grade class, we mentioned a recent letter writing campaign by Wilmington 7th graders, only a year older than themselves.
The final message of our presentations was one of fun and excitement. Each year the Middleton Stream Team holds an Earth Day celebration. The event is free, open to all, and is all about the environment. For several years the event has been held at Creighton Pond Camp. For our presentation to the sixth grade class, Creighton’s camp director Leland Boutilier joined us, and his excitement for the camp and the outdoors was infectious.
Many of the students have attended the camp, (campers also regularly visit Riverbend in the summers), and many more have attended the Earth Day Festival in previous years. Ipswich River will be at the event again this year, and we hope to see many (better yet, all) of the students Sandy and I spoke to in attendance. Everyone is welcome to join us on Sunday, April 29th!