Einstein students get hands-on ecosystem knowledge

Hands-on field trips to the Morton Arboretum in Lisle were a hands-down success for students from The Einstein Academy, who learned about woodlands, wetlands and prairies before beginning to prepare their own schoolyard for new habitats.

The Elgin school made two trips this month to the arboretum -- one for first- through third-graders and one for fourth- to 12th-graders. Both were funded by an Illinois Biodiversity field trip grant sponsored by Independence Tube Corp. of Chicago and awarded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

"There's a movement that educators are calling 'Leave No Child Inside,'" said Claudia Frost, life skills instructor at Einstein. "The whole school sits on 5 acres, and because our property is so large and adjoins the forest preserves, we've got this wonderful opportunity to create and enjoy different learning environments outside.

"We want to get the kids involved in planning these habitats, and one way is by exposing them to different ecosystems to see what they can apply to a schoolyard learning environment," Frost said.

Last fall, academy students got their feet wet in habitat development -- literally and figuratively -- by participating with Aquascape Designs in the building of a pond ecosystem near the front entrance to the school.

It was because of the pond, and the school's upcoming trip to the Newfound Harbor Marine Institute in Key West, Fla., that a wetlands study at the Morton Arboretum was chosen for the fourth-to 12th-graders. Fourth- through eighth-graders also learned how natural and human influences shape a landscape, and high schoolers enjoyed getting down and dirty with wetlands lab work.

Younger students investigated plants and animals in different habitats, learned about living and non-living interactions and explored the arboretum's 4-acre Children's Garden.

Grant monies also will cover follow-up visits to the school by experts from the Morton Arboretum, who will help students learn how to plan habitats for their school grounds and manage them responsibly.

The Einstein Academy is a private school for academically talented students located on the north side of Elgin. With class sizes limited to 12 in order to meet individual needs, the academy enrolls students from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. For information, call (847) 697-3836.