Villa Maria students test soil in study of school property
-- CHEC Earth Force Project 2005--
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April 22, 2005 Erie Times-News Eddie Baxter plunged a sharp metal tube into the ground as fellow Villa Maria Elementary students waited patiently for the dirt he'd unearth. Then they rooted through the dark, compacted soil, carefully scooping some of it into little vials of green liquid.The exercise taught the sixth-graders how to test the acidity of soil. This is really fun," Eddie said. "I never knew testing dirt could be so |
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| fun."Testing soil was just a small part of what the sixth-graders have in mind for Earth Day, which is observed nationwide today. "Earth Day's a really big event for us," Eddie said. Today, they'll clean up trash and debris around their 50-acre campus in Millcreek Township. But the bigger project that they're working on is a land-use plan." |
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It's important to do so that we know if our campus is a healthy environment," Eddie said. "We have to keep it from pollution. As our teachers say, our campus is like an island around all this industrial stuff."Sixth-grade teachers Joni Blackman and Scott Strosser came up with the idea to use Earth Day to teach students about land use. The teachers became interested in the issue through a summer workshop sponsored by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Lake Erie-Allegheny Earth Force."We'd like to see a five-year plan, in order to preserve our green space," Blackman said. The sixth-graders took off classes Thursday to spend the day learning about their campus habitat with presenters from Earth Force, the Presque Isle Audubon Society and the U.S. Forestry Department.
| They identified trees. They talked about the effect of traffic patterns on water flow. They learned that bird-watching can help them judge the health of a watershed.And they pawed through soil samples to judge the soil's content and to test its pH level.Stephanie Warner, who has attended the school since she was in preschool, said she has watched the campus landscape change over the years, such as when another parking lot was added.That's why she believes the school needs a plan for its land."You can't just go and do something. "You have to plan it out," the 12-year-old said. "Then if something goes wrong and you have a plan, you know what to do." For example, Stephanie said, the plan would stop the campus from planting trees that aren't native to northwestern Pennsylvania's environment. It could ruin someone's habitat,"Stephanie said. "We have such nice things, and we want to keep them as long as possible."VERONICA GORLEY can be reached at 870-1702 or by e-mail. |  |
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Villa Maria Elementary School sixth-grader Eddie Baxter checks a soil sample from the school grounds as students help put a landuse plan together. (GREG WOHLFORD/Erie Times-News) |