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Franklin County Conservation District |
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2008 E.A.R.T.H Festival | |
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It was a little chilly, but at least it did not rain or snow like last year! E.A.R.T.H. is a yearlong middle school environmental education program. E.A.R.T.H provides research-based, hands-on curriculum and supply kits to local schools. At the end of the school year E.A.R.T.H. sponsors a student festival/workshop day for all participants to attend. This program is available at no cost to the school or teachers who participate. E.A.R.T.H. provides rich, hands-on science materials to middle school students across Kansas. Research shows that 90% of students are more likely to remember and be able to apply skills and knowledge when they experience things first hand; while only 10-15% of students remember things they read or have been told. The E.A.R.T.H. program reached 303 students in Franklin County during the 2007-2008 school year.
Students line up to make an "Edible Aquifer" with volunteer Dusty Reichard (left). Pudding, cereal and chocolate chips are used to represent layers of the aquifer. Chocolate syrup acts as a pollutant and milk,poured on top, represents the rain and how the pollutant can leach through the layers of the aquifer. Volunteers Jenny Jasper, Miami County Conservation District; Sondra Megrail, KDHE Watershed Management Section information and education specialist; and Herschel George, KSU Watershed Specialist (below) try to stay warm as the students enjoy the edible aquifers they made and learned about during their session. Kansas Forest Service District Forester Connie Robinson-Clemons talks to the students about different species of trees while Marais des Cygnes Watershed Forester Ryan Neises presents "Every Tree For Itself" an activity on understanding what trees need for growth and the benefits of healthy forests for water quality.
Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Biologist Bob Culbertson, left, educates students on migratory birds through an interactive game called "migration headache"; while Biologist Technician Amy Zavala presents the "Quail Game" to students in which they learn about survival skills of quail.
Both of the activities presented by our volunteers from Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks allowed the students some time for physical activity during the event as they ran to migrate or ran to collect food and survive as quail.
Volunteers Tim Gogolski, Lyndon NRCS Office and Lori Kuykendall, Osage County Conservation District presented the Rainfall Simulator. The Rainfall Simulator is designed to show what happens to topsoil on cropland fields and construction sites during rainstorms. Spectators to this demonstration can view a r3-inch rainstorm in progress over 15 minutes, watch the power of raindrops and see water erosion as it occurs. The simulator demonstrates the benefits of crop residue management in protecting topsoil during rainstorms. Four soil trays placed below the oscillating raindrop nozzle have different levels of crop residue placed on the soil surface. The simulator shows the protective benefits of crop residue is in direct proportion to the level of residue covering the soil surface, the more residue the less soil loss and more water infiltration. The quantity and quality of runoff from the soil trays is captured in clear gallon jugs placed below each tray. A tray of growing grass is used to show the water quality benefits of grass buffer strips.
Volunteers from Osawatomie High School; Senior Science Show presented an a show involving snakes of all size, including there big snake "Einstein" pictured below. The show included a variety of critters and information on their natural habitat and how the animals are cared for.
Students also had the opportunity to play "Air Quality Jeopardy" with volunteers Tonya Bronleewe (Statewide EARTH Coordinator) and Diane Mailed (Franklin County Conservation District). THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS AND VOLUNTEERS Franklin County 4-H and Extension Services Gerken Rental Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Kansas Forest Service Kansas State Research and Extension Natural Resources Conservation Service Osage County Conservation District Osawatomie High School- Senior Science Class Peoples Bank Prairie Star Catering
E.A.R.T.H. program is funded through an EPA Section 319 Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Grant, administered through Kansas Department of Health and Environment Local Program Coordinators Jo Ellen Arnold – Franklin County 4-H Agent jearnold@oznet.ksu.edu 785-229-3520 Keri Harris – Dist Mgr, Conservation District district@fccdks.org 785-242-1109 ext 31
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