Students explore water, soil, and ecosystems through outdoor learning
Grade 4 students from Winkler and Morden spent the day outdoors at the Discovery Nature Sanctuary this week taking part in a water-themed field day focused on environmental education and hands-on learning.
The Water Festival featured six interactive stations spread throughout the sanctuary, allowing students to rotate through activities centered on the water cycle, soil types, plant life, and aquatic ecosystems.
Organizers say the goal of the event is to make science engaging while helping students better understand the environment around them.
“We are having an outdoor field day event for Grade 4 students around Winkler and Morden,” said Renee Penner, a committee member with the Discovery Nature Sanctuary.
Penner says getting students outdoors and actively involved helps create a stronger connection to nature than a traditional classroom setting alone.
“I think environmental education is just incredibly important,” she said. “These Grade 4 students are learning all about their environment. They’re learning about the water cycle, about the fresh water on the earth, about plants and the soil.”
Festival returns after years away
The Water Festival is making a return after several years without being held.
Penner explained that when she moved away from Winkler for a period of time, there was no one available to continue organizing the event.
“I moved away from Winkler for a few years and unfortunately there was no one to take on the task of organizing the water festival,” she said.
After moving back to the area last fall with her husband, Penner says one of the first things she did was reconnect with Discovery Nature Sanctuary Chair Paul Goossen to help bring the festival back.
“When me and my husband moved back last fall, the first thing I did was call Paul up and ask, ‘How can I get involved again?’ and I would really like to see this up and running,” she said.
Penner says restarting the festival was something she felt strongly about because of the value environmental education can have on young students.
Hands-on stations keep students engaged
Students moved through six different stations during the day, each designed to teach environmental concepts in a more interactive way.
Activities included learning about different soil types, exploring plant ecosystems, studying freshwater systems, and taking part in critter dipping activities where students examined aquatic organisms found in the water.
Penner says one of the most popular activities focuses on the water cycle.
“My favourite activity is probably what we call ‘follow it,’ where they learn about the water cycle and they get to act as a water molecule,” she explained.
The “Follow It” game, Where the kids are pretending to be a water molecule.
As students move through the different stages of the water cycle, they collect beads to create a bracelet representing their journey through the system.
Penner says activities like that help simplify larger environmental concepts while making learning fun and memorable for younger students.
Encouraging long-term environmental awareness
Penner, who studied environmental science at the University of Manitoba, says she hopes the festival encourages students to think more deeply about how water impacts everyday life and how their own actions affect the environment.
“I would really like to see the kids just have an understanding of how important water is and how their decisions and actions that they do could impact the way the water is around in their environment,” she said.
She also hopes events like the Water Festival inspire some students to continue exploring environmental studies as they grow older.
“I think it’s just a really great opportunity for kids to start learning about their environment and get passionate about it,” Penner said. “Maybe they want to pursue environmental education when they grow up.”
Plans already underway for future festivals
With this year’s event now over, organizers are already talking about future plans for the festival.
Penner says the committee hopes to continue making the Water Festival an annual event and expand participation in the years ahead.
“We want to see this become an annual thing again,” she said. “We would love to see more schools come out and more Grade 4 students get involved.”