Grand Rapids — Grand Rapids Public Schools eighth-graders recently spent time outside their classrooms learning about local water systems and wildlife on land and in the Grand River via canoes.
The Grand Canoe Experience, a partnership between GRPS and Grand Rapids’ GR Outside initiative, gave more than 1,000 students the opportunity to learn teamwork and build relationships with nature and each other while canoeing at Riverside Park.
“Canoeing was my favorite,” Aberdeen Academy eighth-grader Morrison Sheeran said. “I enjoyed getting outside and learning outdoors. I wish we learned more like this in school.”
The program builds on the Canoemobile program, previously offered for the last seven years in partnership with Wilderness Inquiry, a Minneapolis-based national program, and Grand Rapids Parks and Recreation.
In addition to learning how to balance and steer a canoe, the district’s science curriculum supervisor Jessica Vander Ark said students learned how to observe the environment around them.
“As educators we want them to pay attention to the park ecosystem, the waters and what kind of plants are growing,” Vander Ark said. “The overall goal is to expose scholars to the park and everything we have to offer them in the city and assets available to them.
Employees from GR Outside, GR Department of Parks and Recreation outdoor education division and Camp Newaygo facilitated the canoeing adventures and education stations throughout the park. Throughout the day, students learned how to set up and tear down tents, test water quality, sample macroinvertebrates and watch birds.
Morrison said he learned how much teamwork is really involved with setting up a tent.
“You need at least two people to maximize efficiency,” he said. “With (multiple) people it was easier to control. It would be really hard with only one person.”
Aberdeen Academy middle school teacher Teresa Ouendag said being outside together is something her students don’t always get to experience.
“We learned about pollution in the water, invasive species, what kinds of fish are in the river and what they eat,” she said. “Several of my students say they go fishing in these areas, so they’ll know more about these kinds of fish.”
Superintendent Leadriane Roby said outdoor learning opportunities like the Grand Canoe Experience are essential to supporting students’ holistic needs.
“They offer a valuable opportunity to step outside the classroom and witness firsthand the vital role our waterways play in our lives every day,” Roby said.
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