after him 4) putting pesticide on crops
the Waterway
5) putting herbicide on weeds and 6)
littering in the street. Then, the students
As part of the third lesson in the
simulate rain with spray bottles and are
series, students undertook a field trip to
asked where all of the polluted water
acquaint them with this important body
from their neighborhood is going. In this
of water and its unusual inhabitants.
game the students actually watch as all of
The field trip to the Thea Foss Waterway,
their “pollution” seeps down into the bay
which also included a boat trip, was
and see the dirty water that animals have
designed to create a personal relation-
to live in. They are then asked to say one
ship between students and the wildlife in
thing they can do to make sure they do
Commencement Bay.
not contribute to polluting the water in
Many of the students this program
the bay.
addressed have only seen the Thea Foss
Station #2: Environmentally Friendly
Waterway and Commencement Bay from
Window Cleaner Station
a distance and few have actually been on
In this lesson, each student first
these water bodies. This element, which
receives a car care kit to take home to his/
took place on a floating dock and a leased
her parents/guardians. The students are
vessel, allowed students to see up close
then given the opportunity to make the
the birds and fish impacted by storm-
Earth Friendly Window Washing Solution
water pollution as well as to touch and
handle some of the smaller invertebrates.
A proud Tacoma 4th grader shows off her CHB
to be mixed in the “only rain in the drain”
The itinerary also included a visit to the
Junior Bay Ranger badge. spray bottles that accompany the car care
kits. As students rotate through making
stormwater outfalls that extend back into
the solution, the other students in the
their own neighborhoods.
explain how water that goes down the group have a chance to find their homes
storm drain flows directly out to Com- on the satellite photograph of the school
Lesson # 4- Personal Action
mencement Bay (or other water body). and surrounding neighborhood. This Plan: The Jr. Bay Ranger
Much of the pollution that washes down offers them the chance to see all the storm
Summer Program
the storm drain can end up hurting our drains by their house and see where that
environment and the health of the plants water goes.
DAY 1: Trip to Tacoma’s Point Defi-
and animals living in it. Students are Station #3: Stormdrain Marking Art
ance Zoo and Aquarium Owens Beach
asked a few questions about the health Project
Activity 1: Aquarium North Pa-
of the Thea Foss waterway and the Bay Each student gets a sheet of paper
cific tank. This activity introduced the
itself. The presenters explain how our with a picture of a storm drain and an
children to both the tools of conducting
actions add up and directly affect the outfall on it. The child has a list of things
animal behavior research, as well as offer-
water in our neighborhoods and beyond. we would like them to draw, including an
ing an introduction to “Habitat”.
The game is introduced, where students outfall, their house, and what lives in the
• Tank: Observation, Watch an
see how their actions – even just one at a bay. There are a number of craft items
animal for 5 minutes – what is in their
time – can add up to help or harm water to help them, including stamps, storm
(continued on next page)
quality. drain “stencils”
and pictures of
Lesson # 2- “Stormwater
sea creatures
Pollution- Bringing it Home.”
that they can
glue onto the
The specific objective of this les-
page. The idea
son was to move the students from the
is to have them
general concept of being environmentally
literally draw
responsible to the more specific idea
the connections
that they can have a direct impact on the
between where
health of Commencement Bay and Puget
they live, what
Sound.
goes into the

stormdrain, and
Station #1: Enviroscape
where it goes.
An Eniroscape model www.enviro-
scapes.com simulates a “day in the life of
Lesson
Tacoma”. Each student participates in the
lesson by contributing to pollution in the
#3- Dock
city by simulating 1) washing a car on the
stations and
street 2) not fixing an oil leak in his/her Educational
car 3) walking a dog and not cleaning up
trip out onto
Students in the CHB program learn about habitat and animal behavior along the
shoreline at Owens Beach.
Clearing - 2009 Compendium Edition http://www.clearingmagazine.org Page 29
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