News

What do playdough, a scavenger hunt and water sampling have in common?

Everything, according to Stormwater Education Coordinator Sierra Stickney, a Resilience Corps NC AmeriCorps member.

Sierra launched the first Stormwater Education Week at West Craven Middle School last week, using a variety of tools and experiences to teach middle-school students about water quality, stormwater and stormwater management, and the relationship between wetlands and agriculture.

“Each day, I would start the class period by discussing the topic of the day and then provide the students with a hands-on activity or outdoor activity,” Sierra said. “I believe getting the students out of the classroom was a good way to engage them in the lessons and have fun!”

Sierra taught two back-to-back classes in Agriculture teacher Hope Mauney’s classroom: one class had 25 students; the next, 27.

The playdough was used in an activity demonstrating how wetlands work: playdough represented the land; a spray bottle filled with water made it “rain;” and students could watch the “stormwater runoff” be absorbed by sponges, acting as wetlands.

“The wetland activity was a great way for students to understand how a wetland functions, and I think because it was kind of messy, it made it more entertaining,” Sierra said.

The scavenger hunt, held on Day 4, allowed Sierra and Program Director Clay Barber to introduce students to the campus’ large rain garden and talk about how rain gardens function and where the outfall for all stormwater on campus goes. For a second scavenger hunt, held on Day 5, students used a map of the school with a key to help them identify where the other stormwater control measures are located on campus.

“At first, the students were not thrilled about going outside when it was 35 degrees. However, when we went down to the Neuse River, you could tell they were thrilled to just be by the water,” Sierra said. “It was nice to hear the students laugh and have fun exploring.”

Sierra and Clay will be teaming up again with Mrs. Mauney and West Craven for more stormwater education in the spring.

“Her passion for providing a safe, interactive and enriching learning experience for her students can be seen in the classroom,” Sierra said. “I’m excited to work on more activities with her.”

Resilience Corps NC AmeriCorps is a service program of the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, funded by a grant through the North Carolina Governor’s Commission on Volunteerism.

Like the stormwater work Sound Rivers is doing on campuses across the Neuse and Tar-Pamlico watersheds? So do we! Donate to support the Campus Stormwater Program today!