Playing Catch-Up

It has been an incredibly busy spring season here at Headwaters Park!  So much so that our updates have backlogged, so be prepared for an inundation of news over the next week highlighting our events and future endeavors.  It's possible that many Erie residents feel a little behind schedule after trying to keep up with a very finicky Mother Nature this past year.  Our last post was in snowy February (followed by snowy March) so we will jump right in with our annual Mobile Ag Lab visit at the end of March (thankfully, most of the snow had melted.  Not all, but much of it)

Amazingly, there is a fully-equipped science lab inside that semi trailer.

 The Mobile Ag Lab was created by the PA Farm Bureau and has several trailers that travel throughout the state.  The Lab visits schools and events, focusing its activities on how our state agriculture is tied into our everyday lives.  A pretty important message, especially for our children.  This year the lab was sponsored by the Farm Bureau, Mark Muir, and Mark Bruns, to which are are very appreciative.

What do the students do while inside the lab?

Elementary students measuring for an experiment with soy.

We had nearly 300 students visit the Lab that last week in March, engaging in a wide variety of activities in the lab.  Older students solved a water quality mystery, extracted DNA from bananas, and learned how to create plastic from corn.  Younger students learned about different ingredients in candy, the benefits of certain insects, and compared soy crayons to wax crayons.  All of the activities have a specific goal and are age appropriate.  Where else can you make your own crayon from scratch from our natural resources?

Of course, while some groups of students were busy in the Lab, staff and volunteers kept the other students moving with a variety of activities from getting elbow deep in the stream table, taste testing various vegetables, and hiking in Headwaters Park.  We also challenged older students with the debut of our map reading program.  Success!  Keep checking in for phase two of the orienteering program - the installation of our compass course this summer!

Sorting vegetables and tasting them

Learning about our state tree, the Eastern Hemlock, from our volunteer

Enjoying a view of Mill Creek and the last vestiges of snow

 We have already booked the Mobile Ag Lab for May of 2015.  If you know of a teacher that would like their class/grade to participate, or you are interested in returning, contact me!  Or, if you value what this experience brings to the youth of Erie County, consider assisting the return of the Ag Lab by becoming a sponsor.  Every donation helps keep this program affordable for schools.  We look forward to another visit next year!

Playing a game on our hike in Headwaters Park.