A group of 32 excited fourth- and fifth-graders from Saint Raphael School gathered at the lip of Bon Tempe Reservoir last week on Mount Tamalpais to learn a little about where their water comes from.The field trip is part of a new program launched by the Marin Municipal Water District to get children thinking not only about the county's limited water supply but the environment that surrounds it.
"It gives them an appreciation for where their water comes from and that it is a limited resource," said Craig Lauridsen of the district's water conservation department, who spoke to the students. "It's also a great outdoor learning experience."
He gave them some facts and figures to think about:
- The district produces an average of 25 million gallons of water a day, enough to fill a garden hose long enough to wrap around Earth 12 times.
- Less than 1 percent of water produced by the district is used for drinking.
- It costs 75 cents to fill a year's worth of water bottles from the tap, versus more than $1,000 if the bottles are bought from a store.
AmeriCorps volunteers also lead the giggling, smiling students in a game of rock, paper, scissors to show them how the food chain works. Students paired off, and those who won climbed the chain moving from grass seeds to field mice, to snakes and then hawks, until returning back to Earth.
Sarah Weiss, fifth-grade teacher at Saint Raphael, watched as her students played the game.
"We try to talk about recycling,
and we study water use in class and will look at the food chain, too," Weiss said. "This is a really good hands-on opportunity for the students." Parent Roberto Cortez liked the discussion of water. "It gives them a good sense from where the most precious thing comes from. It's not from the faucet," he said. His daughter Cassandra, 9, a fourth-grader, was nearby picking up an orange weed wrench. Part of the program included students pulling out French broom, an invasive on the watershed that chokes out native plants. "We learned about the food chain and water," Cassandra said, as she lugged a wrench. "I like it." Suzanne Whelan, watershed volunteer coordinator, said the program has been a success and is fully booked. "It's not only about keeping the water clean for us, but about the plants and animals we share the area with," Whelan said. "It's a chance for them to get out and have a little fun while learning. It's been great so far.">