Follow the Water 2024

School Programs to Know and Benefit the Watershed

Follow the Water @ Canterbury Woods Elementary

April 12, 2024
Thanks to everyone who made possible the "Follow the Water" program at Canterbury Woods Elementary! Faculty took the lead, while Stormwater Planning Division, AAAS STEM Volunteer program, and Friends of Long Branch provided their much-appreciated expertise, and Friends of Accotink Creek played a supporting role. Thanks also to the students for their interest and enthusiasm.

"Follow the Water" allows us to take the time to go deep on the topic, starting with classroom presentation, then a watershed walk along the stream, and biological stream monitoring to survey the aquatic invertebrate life.

Friends of Long Branch organized another Follow the Water program for 5th graders at Canterbury Woods Elementary. After walking the short distance from the school to Long Branch, the students viewed a demonstration of invertebrate collection methods, accompanied by a discussion of how studying invertebrates is key to assessing stream health. The students then proceeded to the main activity of sorting through trays of stream invertebrates.

Although the selection of invertebrates in Long Branch is not the best, the students very much enjoyed the opportunity to get outdoors and get their hands dirty during school. Ecologists from Stormwater Planning Division brought along samples of live invertebrates from healthier streams to provide the students with a picture of what could be in their local stream.

From the teacher - "I just want to give you all a BIG HUGE thank you! The kids couldn’t stop talking about it and they said it’s been the best day of school. This year’s group is a bit special as you can tell but they LOVE learning hands on. Again thank you from the bottom of my heart to make this meaningful experience happen.

Students gather around the whiteboard to tally all the invertebrates observed

Follow the Water of Earlier Years