8th Grade Field Trip: The Chesapeake Bay Foundation
The 8th Grade class participated in a three-day overnight field trip to Tangier Island in order to participate in the award-winning Chesapeake Bay Foundation Education Program.
“The Chesapeake Bay Foundation has a wonderful educational outreach program and we are very fortunate to be able to take our 8th grade class there for the full experience,” says Kathleen Hobbs, an Upper School science teacher. “It is great for our children to be exposed to this level of intensive experiential learning. We live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, so the children experience firsthand how what we do in our area affects the Chesapeake Bay. Getting them out on the water really brings what they are studying in the classroom to life.”
According to the CBF website the program is described as follows: “In the heart of the Chesapeake, students and teachers spend three days and two nights experiencing the Bay at its wildest and most remote. Through hands-on activities and lively discussions, CBF educators demonstrate that even far from urban and agricultural activity, pollution flowing downstream threatens the Bay’s productivity. Though each location is unique, participants at the four island centers experience the culture, history, and ecology of the Bay. Wetlands, grass beds, and tidal flats teem with life, offering many opportunities for exploration and investigation by foot, canoes, and workboats. Students and teachers also have the opportunity to interact with the local community to learn how the livelihoods of watermen are connected to the Bay. These experiences connect both the natural and social systems of the Chesapeake. Students gain firsthand knowledge of academic disciplines such as earth science, biology, chemistry, civics, economics, and government in addition to practicing sustainable conservation and responsible citizenship.” For more information about the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, please visit their website at www.cbf.org.
