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The Review October 13, 2015
EDUCATION | OUTDOOR STEWARDSHIP DAYS
Hands-on learning soon to be hands off? BY JERMAINE PIGEE
DIXON – For the 18th consecutive year, about 1,000 third-graders from Lee and Ogle counties came to Lowell Park on Tuesday and Wednesday for some hands-on education during Outdoor Stewardship Days. Whether there will be a 19th year remains to be seen, said Lindsay Daniels, administrative coordinator for the Lee County Soil and Water Conservation District, which sponsors the 2-day event. “The way [state] funding is for soil and water conservation districts, we will be lucky if we can be here next year,� Daniels said. “We are really struggling.� Thanks to the budget stalemate, SWCD funding has been suspended for fiscal year 2016. If the suspension remains in effect, districts statewide will have to lay off workers, she said. “We didn’t receive funds for fiscal year 2014, and nothing for fiscal year 2015,� Daniels said. “Since 2008, our funding has been cut by about 70 percent.� At Stewardship Days, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, University of Illinois Extension Service, and other volunteers joined soil and water conservation district representatives to give presentations to the youngsters. The third-graders traveled between 22 stations learning about the water cycle, conservation law enforcement, forestry and wildlife habitats, among other things. They also had the rare opportunity to see a peregrine falcon, a great horned owl and a redtailed hawk up close. Kiana Olalde, from St. Mary School in Dixon, liked the conservation law enforcement station.
She heard a presentation from an officer who protects wildlife and the environment. “We got to feel the animal pelts,� the 8-year-old said. “I also learned not to mess with the animals.� Fellow St. Mary student Cody McBride also liked learning about conservation law enforcement. “There was a stuffed coyote, and I’ve never seen a coyote,� he said. Using a pencil, paper and a thumbtack, Katie Pratt, agriculture literacy coordinator for Lee County Ag in the Classroom, taught students how to make pinwheels. “It was a hands-on project to illustrate what wind energy is and how to collect wind energy,� Pratt said. “If you blow on the pinwheel really strong, it will not move well because strong wind is not how we get our energy. An easy, soft breeze will move the blades around the wind turbine.� Daniels said she hopes Outdoor Stewardship Days can continue, “For a lot of these thirdgraders, this is their only field trip,� she said. “This event could be put by the wayside just because we probably will not be here as employees.�
Kids get up close, personal with rare breeds; budget impasse puts event on endangered list
Photos by Alex T. Paschal
Rick O’Neill, an officer with Illinois Department of Natural Resources, shows off a 35-pound flathead catfish Wednesday, drawing an assortment of reactions from third-graders (top) attending the Outdoor Stewardship Days at Lowell Park in Dixon. Click on this story at saukvalley.com to see videos of slippery, slimy creatures like this bullfrog.
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