Second Grade Scientists September 29th, 2009
Seed-bank trays ready for watering
Second Graders ROCK! Tuesday I spent the morning with the second grade classes of Washington Elementary School in Riverside. We began a 2 month project with a presentation about invasive grasses and loss of native plants in grasslands. Then they set-up trays of soil for a seed-bank study. Lead by myself and Cambria Ortega, one of the 2nd grade teachers, the students will be helping me and Carole Bell, the manager of Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, investigate the viability of the native seed-bank in the grasslands. These kids are amazingly smart and excited to participate in a science project that will actually be used to help with management of a reserve. Having not worked with kids for awhile, I was delighted have this experience and to learn about how we scientists can reach out to children. Cheers to our young ecologists and the teachers that support them!
