Kids go outdoors to learn by doing

Soil erosion and water pollution were demonstrated.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- About 425 fourth-graders from the Warren City Schools enjoyed a field trip to a hands-on outdoor environmental science learning laboratory this week in Packard Park.
"It's live science for the kids," said Mike Wilson, executive director of the Trumbull Soil and Water Conservation District, which conducted the event.
The annual event, known as the Community Waters Festival, was Tuesday and Wednesday in Packard Park along the Mahoning River shoreline, with about half of the children participating each day, Wilson said.
"It is all hands-on. The kids get to see everything. They get to experiment. Instead of just looking at a textbook, it's all real life," said Kathleen Fetcenko, a fourth grade teacher at Garfield Elementary School.
"It covers a lot of the fourth grade curriculum," she said. "It's great day. We learn a lot in one day," she added.
During the four-hour program, the pupils rotated in groups among four science stations.
In one exhibit, titled "Pollution Solutions,'' Holly Burnett-Hanley, coordinator of Youngstown State University's Mahoning River Education Project, used a model landscape in a box to demonstrate the runoff of pollutants from the land into two streams and a lake after it rains.
The pollutants were simulated by various colors of Kool-Aid and food coloring, which discolored the stream water after a simulated rain.
Here's the purpose
The goal was to teach pupils that pollution can be reduced by having one's car checked for fluid leaks, by using cars less frequently and by using fewer lawn and garden chemicals.
"She showed us how pollution is bad for the animals in our environment. She showed us how the water turns black when all that stuff goes into the lake, and it kills animals," said Lizzie Wargo, one of Fetcenko's pupils.
Lizzie said she learned that pupils can help control pollution by asking their parents to check labels on household products to see if they're nontoxic.
Inside a pavilion, a representative of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife used a Streamulator, a model landscape in a box that simulated stream flow after heavy rains and how it erodes the sand in the model's streambanks. Pupils learned about erosion control measures there.
"It showed us the difference between before it rains, when it's calm, and after it rains, when the water's coming down hard," said Sebastian Kanchok, one of Fetcenko's pupils.
Yet another exhibit featured "The Incredible Journey," a series of stations depicting evaporation and the various places rainwater goes, such as rivers, lakes, glaciers and the ocean.
Facts about beavers
In a demonstration called the Lodge-Podge, children learned about the characteristics and dam-building habits of beavers as one of them dressed in a beaver costume, as well as learning about other animals associated with streams, rivers and lakes.
"I found a lot out about beavers," Sebastian said, including the fact that they have orange teeth and that they store fat in their tails.
Lizzie said she enjoyed the Lodge Podge, where she learned that beavers can hold their breath for 10 minutes.
The event ended with a live demonstration of birds of prey by representatives of the Lake Milton Raptor Center and the Birds of Flight Sanctuary. Part of the presentation pertained to the impact of pollution on birds.
The annual event was sponsored by the city, the Warren Chamber Foundation and Trumbull County commissioners.