Whiz Kids: Ben Rush Students Help Restore Wetlands

Ages: The fifth graders are all 10 to 11-years-old

School:

Accomplishment: Working in partnership with the City of Redmond, fifth graders from Benjamin Rush Elementary have been helping to clean up the Redmond West Wetlands by removing invasive species and planting more than 350 new native species.

Over the course of three field sessions spread across September and October, and with the help of parents and teachers, the students from three different fifth grade classes have logged more than 344 volunteer hours on the project. Their efforts have helped return the Redmond West Wetlands to a beautiful natural state.

“The students really made a huge difference there,” said Kati Pedegana, one of the fifth-grade teachers involved in the project. “And they gained a lot from it.”

In addition to the fieldwork, Ben Rush teachers put together lesson plans that helped the students learn about forest environments, native and invasive plant species and volunteer activism. The coursework was spread out over two months.

Key to Awesomeness: Pedegana said that the students took to the project really well, both in the classroom and in the field.

“We were pleasantly surprised,” Pedegana said. “I think they were happy to help the environment.”

She said one of the more memorable events was when the students pulled a particularly large section of roots out from the ground.

“They wanted to take them home as souvenirs,” she said.

Pedegana said that the students were particularly interested to restore an environment right in their school’s backyard, an area they see every day.

And they’re already looking forward to doing more.

“We’re planning to go back in the spring,” she said.