REVIEWS


well received at home with a cuddle on the couch. The back of the book offers further information about migration as well as a book list, related websites and two movie suggestions to continue the conversa- tion. I think that it would be a wonderful lesson paired with participation in the Great Backyard Bird Count (February, 2011 http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/) or as part of a butterfl y raising/release project in a classroom. Going Home would be a great addition to any school or home library.


Emily Baker LeRoux is a homeschooling mother living in Maple Grove, Minnesota with her husband and two eco-literate chil- dren.


children living in the United States spend, on average, 30 minutes of unstructured time outdoors each week, compared to 13.5 hours of watching television, playing video games and using their computers (Hofferth and Sandberg 2001). Hofferth, a family studies professor at the University of Maryland, also found that at the propor- tion of children ages 9 to 12 who spent time hiking, walking, fi shing, playing on the beach or gardening declined 50 percent between 1997 and 2003 (St. George 2007). Thus, during a time when emphasis has been placed on our de-natured, de-sensi- tized and indoor-bound youth, the book Hands on, Feet Wet is timely, relevant and refreshing.


Hands on, Feet Wet is a story of the


creation and evolution of River Crossing Environmental Charter School in Portage, Wisconsin. The book weaves the personal challenges and successes of the author, Victoria Rydberg, with vignettes from students, parents, local professionals, other educators to create a River Crossing anthology. Full of photos, media cover- age, student poems and journal entries, the book has a photo-album feel. Yet, these personal struggles and triumphs are the very hook that keeps the reader engaged. In fact, the book resurrects the localness in the reader, possibly inspiring them to take a walk to a local creek and look inside. Rydberg’s personal story as a young,


Hands On, Feet Wet


The Story of River Crossing Environmental Charter School


by Victoria Rydberg (2007). Wisconsin Department of Public Instruc- tion; 233 pages.


Reviewed by Susie Strife R


ecent scholarly articles and popular media have drawn attention to a national crisis in the United States: youths’ disconnection from nature. Nature Defi cit Disorder has become a popular diagnosis to describe the “de-natured” child who, as Rich Louv (2005) depicts, spends more time “plugged-in” to various media outlets or in front of the television than play- ing outside. This refl ects the trend that


CLEARING 2010


environmentally zealous educator parallels the creation of River Crossing School. The book begins at year one, day one of the cre- ation of the school—as well as at the start of Rydberg’s career as the only teacher at River Crossing. Later in the book, the reader begins to understand that being a teacher at River Crossing also means being a teacher, mom, friend, disciplinarian and community instigator. Taking on the role as head educator, instigator, curriculum planner and life coach is no small feat for Rydberg, who is fresh out of college, wide- eyed and passionate for change. Yet, it is because of these very qualities that both River Crossing and Rydberg grow into their respected positions for middle school students in Portage, WI. Based on a one-room schoolhouse model, River Crossing Charter School extends education beyond the walls of the traditional classroom and into nearby ponds, fi elds, and marshes. The environ- mental restoration-based curriculum is integrated, and subjects cross-pollinate


www.clearingmagazine.org/online


through the individual projects that stu- dents complete during the school year. For example, this year, River Crossing students designed and created a 1800 square foot rain garden for the new International Aldo Leopold Foundation Legacy Center, which helped students learn and apply impor- tant science and math concepts, as well as taught them teamwork and communica- tion skills necessary for work in the real world. In a student essay, Kate Wolf cap- tures the type of learning that takes place at River Crossing, sharing, “We learned more doing things hands-on in the fi eld and classroom than we did sitting in one place taking notes, because we got to feel it, understand it, get it under our fi nger- nails.” Such personal vindications verify that River Crossing’s approach walks the talk of environmental education: learning about the environment through being in the environment.


Like any new school, the growing


pains are tough, yet every success is seen as a step forward to the creation of a solid and well-respected school. One example of the tangible successes the students have achieved are their high test scores in read- ing, math, science and social studies. Since River Crossing students have to fulfi ll the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, they have to take the same standard- ized tests as all other public schools. Ryd- berg graphs the continual increase in test scores among the River Crossing Students compared to the local junior high and Wisconsin’s junior high schools overall, revealing that untraditional educational approaches really can work. While higher test scores are one way of measuring River Crossing’s successes, another, less conventional way is voicing the students’ own achievements. Students keep both a classroom and a fi eld journal to assess their own lessons learned and personal triumphs, creating a sense of personal mo- tivation through refl ection and evaluation. Throughout the book, the reader quickly learns that both students and the school grow with and for each other.


Ultimately, the book’s grassroots, local


and environmental feel makes the reader question why all middle schools aren’t going in the same direction. In a time when sustainability is the new hot work, and a “go green” consciousness is spread- ing throughout the United States, it seems that the most important place to start is with the next generation of curious, open-


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