Building Environmental Stewardship through Field Trips
Tracy Dordell, a teacher at New Highland Academy in Oakland, recently utilized an excursion grant to take 30 4th grade students on a field trip to Muir Beach where they participated in the Kids for the Bay Program and learned about environmental stewardship.
“I am writing this letter to express my sincere gratitude for the excursion grant that my class received. The grant of $1,000 made it possible for my students to attend this field trip. It covered the majority of the bus transportation to Muir Beach. If we did not receive this grant, we would not have been able to go.
This field trip was an invaluable learning opportunity for 27 students and 6 chaperones. They were able to experience the California Coastline and interact with organisms in their habitats. We were able to complete the field study component of our KIDS FOR THE BAY curriculum with our instructor.
I have been a teacher for OUSD for 26 years. I am a huge advocate of field trips for our students. My school does not have funding for field trips. We rely solely on grants and other funding sources to provide these opportunities for our children. These experiences build on a knowledge base that should be cultivated through hands on learning, observation, social interaction, sensory stimulation, and environmental stewardship.
It was a memorable day that we will never forget. I am so appreciative that my students were able to have this experience.”