Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Thursday, October 30, 2008

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Students used brown and green crayons to color what the wetlands looked like in autumn. They'll return to McConnell Springs in the winter and spring to compare the seasonal changes.

Children ambled along dry, wooded trails and scampered over rocks imbedded in a hillside as they explored the riches of McConnell Springs, a pocket of natural wonders tucked near downtown Lexington.

“We all know what students can see, touch and experience are far more beneficial to their understanding,” said Breckinridge Elementary teacher Jennifer Mink. And having already studied ecosystems and environments before Tuesday’s field trip, “they could ask deeper questions and go farther.”

In its second year, a special districtwide science program brings fourth-graders to two city parks to collect data about the local environment through seasonal changes. Harrison Elementary kids, for example, visited McConnell Springs last week; they’ll go back in December and again in April. Other schools are visiting Raven Run Nature Sanctuary.

“I love that in one place, they’re seeing all three ecosystems we’ve been talking about,” said Harrison teacher Cori Coleman. “It makes it real.”

After close encounters with a forest, wetlands and meadow, one student declared the outing a success. “It was all like a science experiment because we were testing things out,” Cassidy Kemplin explained as classmates munched on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches during a break. “We had to put all the clues together to figure out the ecosystem.”

Christopher Hager, who had visited the park before, said using a leaf chart to identify several trees was his favorite part. Plus, “if you get a question you don’t know on a science test, you can probably remember back to here and figure it out,” he added.

Park naturalists had rotated small groups through the three ecosystems. In each location, the students noted signs of animals and insects, from a groundhog burrow and a granddaddy longlegs to rabbit scat, and they jotted down the air and soil temperatures and sunlight readings. They also used crayons to sketch each ecosystem as it looked during autumn. They’ll record the same data in the winter and spring for comparison.

“They’re so curious. They are asking questions,” Coleman said. “They’re so engaged.”

In the meadow or grassland, the grasses and flowers were readily apparent. But in the wetland, things were a bit trickier since the land was dry. “That’s the cool thing about wetlands,” naturalist Laurie Thomas noted. “Not all of them are wet year-round.” But by identifying cattails, mallard feathers and other plants and animals there that all like water, the students puzzled out the ecosystem.

In the forest ecosystem, they identified a black walnut tree by its leaves and fruit, and they did leaf rubbings in their journals. The Harrison kids also spied a squirrel’s nest high up in a tree and a yellow jacket buzzing near the paved pathway and heard a cardinal’s call in the distance.

“I liked the color of the leaves, and we got to pick up the humongous walnuts that fell off the tree,” Breckinridge fourth-grader Brandi Boone said during her school’s first session, summing up the field trip as “one of the best ever.”

After lunch, the kids used handheld GPS units to go on a wildlife scavenger hunt. They later compared notes on what they had found as they checked out a bat skeleton, skunk pelt and turtle shells in the visitors center.

On their second trips this winter, students will focus on wetlands and conservation efforts. And in the spring wrap-up sessions, they will review and share what they’ve learned.

“The students will be posting that data with photos and data tools in a digital notebook that other kids from the district can access,” said Lori Bowen, district science specialist for FCPS.

This year, Bowen invited Ashland, Breckinridge, Harrison, Millcreek and Northern to participate in the program, which is funded by Kentucky American Water. Last year also included Athens-Chilesburg, Deep Springs and Yates elementary schools.

“The park naturalists work really hard to develop lessons that will connect kids to the outdoors and have real experiences with science,” she said.

About McConnell Springs:

In 1775, William McConnell and fellow frontiersmen camped at a natural spring in the wilderness of Kentucky. They named their future settlement Lexington in honor of the first battle of the American Revolution, fought in Massachusetts.

Today, McConnell Springs is a 26-acre natural pocket within an industrial area near downtown Lexington. Two miles of trails wander around the sinking springs, vegetation, stone fences and vestiges of historical buildings. McConnell Springs boasts more than 130 species of plants and numerous species of urban wildlife.

LFUCG’s Division of Parks and Recreation manages McConnell Springs as a natural area. The park is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; admission is free. The site is at 416 Rebmann Lane, off Old Frankfort Pike; call (859) 225-4073 for more details.