Staff Stuff

Staff Stuff

Congratulations for being selected, and thanks for choosing, to be an Instructor at High Trails! We’re looking forward to another fun year of students, communities, laughter, and growth. It will also be another year of hard work, getting along with different personalities, and realizing that all in the world is never quite…perfect. Ah well. With the right attitude, it’s always fun.

“The people who live in a golden age usually go around complaining how yellow everything looks”. – Randall Jarrell

Below is a good amount of information pertaining to your arrival; take a close look at it all and let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

New Staff Training

Training will be invaluable to you in your professional development and a lot of fun as well. Plan on 10 days of training, with weekends off. During training there will be daytime and evening classes; some experiential, some lecture, and some independent study. You’ll participate as a student in some of our classes, learn the skills it will take to be successful, and practice practice practice to ensure you are confident and competent when students arrive!

You will be up and moving non-stop from 8am through 9pm, with short breaks for meals. Be sure to bring a notebook and writing utensils. Be prepared to be outside for large chunks of time. Meals will be provided during all of training. More details about training will be coming in an email from Administration.

Check out the FAQ section on the main staff page for more information about what staff training looks like as well.

You receive $600 for training. This is paid after you 1) turn in all your paperwork 2) finish the training period, 3) pass your skills certifications (such as Archery, Climbing, and bow drill making) and 4) complete your 3 peer evaluations. A small portion of these skills are completed during the two weeks of training, therefore a small portion of the $600 can be earned during the first two weeks. However, the majority of the skill testing and the 3 peer evaluations happen during the first five weeks with students, meaning Training Pay will not immediately be paid out after the two weeks of training.

September Training

You are welcome to arrive at our Edwards Site (42842 Jenks Lake Rd East, Angelus Oaks, CA 92305) anytime between September 4th and the first day of training (September 8th); during this time we will have an outdoor camping area, so bring a tent and sleeping bag. Real restrooms and showers will be available nearby. If you do show up early, keep in mind that we will be working hard to get ready for the start of staff training and won’t have much time as we’d like to get to know you (this will come during staff training).

Official housing and food are provided starting the evening before the first day of staff training when you will move into a cabin with others participating in training. There are comfortable beds, hot showers, and restrooms for your use. Pack for this as though you were taking a short trip; your car will be nearby. By the end of the first week, you will take a tour of our site and the housing available and make decisions as to where you will be living. In the second week of training, you will move into your lodging for the year.

There is a casual Welcome BBQ on Sunday, the 7th at 5pm at the amphitheater on site. All new staff are welcome to come meet each other and Admin! It is optional, therefore it you are still traveling, no worries.

Fall Training Start! We will officially meet at 9am at the Edwards dining hall on the first day of training: 9/8/2024.

Mid-Year Training (Any Training that is not starting September 8th)

For Mid-Year Training (This means any training that does NOT start on September 8th): Week #1 you will shadow a both Cabin and Fields Instructor during the day and evening and have some procedural training. Each day will be about 10 hours of work, with the time off varying when it is during the day. You’ll already be living in your housing, so you’ll be able to go home every night and sleep in your own bed. Week #2 will find you serving as a Cabin Instructor by yourself (while earning your daily wage). Week #3 you’ll be in the Field teaching classes paired up with an Administrator. Week #4 you’ll jump into the regular staff rotation with everyone else.

Communicate with us about the details of your arrival and when your housing is available!

Please make sure you have current First Aid & CPR with child certifications prior to arrival for and Mid-Year Training.

Getting Here

If you’re driving here, head over to the Sites section and check out the directions to the Edwards site. If you are flying into Southern California, we will be happy to pick you up from the Ontario airport (ONT); email us with your arrival information, and we will contact you to confirm everything. If you fly into another airport, talk to them about a shuttle that takes you out to Ontario airport, and we’ll pick you up there. We can also pick up from San Bernardino MetroLink train station. If you are arriving without transportation, many people here are willing to share their car if you share gas and maintenance expenses with them.

Computers, Internets, Cell Phones

During staff training, and during the school year, there will be a shared computer available for you to check your email and hop on the internet during the program week. There is decent to good cell phone coverage (T-Mobile has the best coverage here) around the site, with all of the towns and cities having full coverage. We’ve got an internet connection for program use centered at the dining hall. If you live in a townhouse, you’ll coordinate with your roommates to set up the internet. If you live on site and don’t want to walk over to the dining hall for internet, you can coordinate with your roommates to set up satellite internet.

Packing List

Bring whatever you like to make your home at High Trails feel like…home. Each room/house has a twin bed and other basic furniture and storage areas. Make sure to bring your own bed linens and towels. Bring your computer you like to stare at, books you like to read from, pictures you like to look at, music you like to listen to, and gear you like to use. Your backyard will be the mountains, beaches, and deserts of California, so be sure to bring your backpack, skis and snowboard, bike or climbing gear. There are well-equipped staff kitchens, so don’t worry about kitchen fares such as microwaves, toaster ovens, plates, or utensils. Take a look at this Google Spreadsheet for the details on what High Trails provides.

For clothing, winter/spring here will most likely be in the 30’s-60’s. Bring shorts for weekends down the mountain, but remember that sturdy pants without holes (no leggings) and fully enclosed shoes are required each day at work (Crocs don’t count as fully enclosed). Winter evenings will be chilly with temperatures dropping to freezing at night, so remember a warm hat, lots of synthetic layers, cold weather boots, and gloves. Good snow and rain gear are essential. We will supply you with two staff T-shirts to wear during work on the first and last program day. We are close enough to major cities that you can buy anything extra you may want or need.

To be a good, effective teacher you will need more than just your knowledge and wits; you will need props and other teaching tools. Many of these we will give you or help you create, but much of the preparation will be on your shoulders. Consider bringing spare markers, crayons, posterboard, contact paper, stuffed animals and balls, ropes, cones, poker chips, and other random, assorted items that could be used to create teaching props. We also have a small library of useful information for class presentations, however if you have any resources that would be helpful in developing your lesson plans, please bring these along.

Required Items to Bring

Wristwatch – yes, cell phones have the time, but are not easy to glance at when you are in the middle of teaching…and we have pretty strict rules of when you cell phone may be out around students.
Day backpack – a backpack big enough to carry your personal belonging, food and water for yourself, plus your High Trails issued First Response Kit while hiking all day with your students as a Field Instructor.
Headlamp – super helpful in teaching and leading groups at night. Also crucial in an emergency. Bonus points if it has a red light feature for easily teaching Astronomy.
Reusable bags – at least two bags (up to four can be useful) to carry your teaching props and snacks for students as a Field Instructor. You’ll recruit your students to help carry them.
Snow chains/cables – required if you are bringing a vehicle, even a 4WD/AWD. CalTrans requires all vehicles to carry snow chains/cables in their vehicle between November 1 – April 1. They don’t salt the roads in the National Forest, so you will use them too, particularly if you don’t have 4WD/AWD!

“If You Have Them Already” Items

If you do not already have these, hold off. We will have some available during Staff Training. If you buy any material, save your receipts. We will reimburse you up to $45.

Clipboard – often times staff like ones that are also a “folder” that holds papers
Craft supplies to help make props for your classes.
Dry erase markers and 8.5×11 whiteboard
Soft “throwables” – stuffed animals, nerf balls, whiffle balls, etc – all great to use in circle games with children
Clothes pins, toothpicks, poker chips – these sound random, but if you have them kicking around they are part of the props needed to teach some of our classes

Photos of Around Site & Staff Housing

Take a look at this Google Drive for photos of where you will be working and living! Not everything is represented in this Drive. There is more staff housing than is photographed, and of course, the site is different when 160 children are using it…

Paperwork

All of this information will come your way via email with more detailed instructions, however here is the overview:

Instructor Employment Agreement: Please look this over carefully and return it to us by the due date. Be sure to look closely at our schedule, start times, and end times; we will count on your fulfilling the terms of your contract (and so will lots of students…). If, for some reason, you have changed your mind about accepting this position, please be upfront with us; other applicants would appreciate it. Contracts are sent over an online document signing service, so if you haven’t seen this yet be sure to check your junk email filters.
First Aid and Professional Rescuer CPR certifications: Be sure to bring current copies of these certifications with you. If you need re-certification, we will offer for a cost both HSI First Aid and CPR courses before program begins in the fall; this year’s date is Sunday, September 21st. The cost is $45 for one or $70 for both. Plan on each class taking up to 4 hours. If you are starting Mid-Season/Winter/Spring, plan on arriving with your current certification already. We do not offer a class for Mid-Season, Winter, or Spring staff.
Background Check: You will need your Drivers License for this.
Tax Information: You will need your Drivers License & Social Security Card, or your Passport, for your employment eligibility paperwork. Bring these to training.
Health Insurance Information: bring your health insurance card or be ready to sign up for other insurance/plans.
Food Handler’s Permit: you must take this short online course and have the certification before you can start work with students. Please do this before you show up here at High Trails. Full information on this course, along with the registration code, will be emailed to you.

Keeping in touch until you are here…

Keep an eye on your email inbox; we do our best to keep in touch as the months go by before you head out to High Trails. We’ll offer introductions of administration and lots of random but super important information. Especially if you sign a contract with us 6+ months ahead of time, we want you to feel both comfortable and secure in your commitment to us as well as have an idea of the personalities of the folks you’ll be working with.

Paychecks

The first time you turn in timecards is on Friday, September 26th for the fall and Friday, January 23rd for winter. You will receive your first paycheck the following Friday. Your first paycheck will be for your first program week spent being in charge of a student group. From here on out, every Friday is exciting; you either turn in a timecard in anticipation of a check or receive your actual check. Use your smartphone and your favorite banking app to deposit these things electronically.

We offer up to $500 reimbursement for traveling out to High Trails for the first time once you have completed the two weeks of staff training. This means you must save your receipts for airfare, gas, lodging, food, etc., as you travel to California. After you arrive and complete training, you will submit all those receipts with a purchase reimbursement form, and we’ll write you a check to be delivered on the next payday. (Please note: a bank statement does not count; it has to be the receipt.)

Your $600 training stipend is paid only after you turn all your paperwork in, complete skills certifications (archery, climbing, and bow drilling) and complete three(3) peer evaluations. You have five weeks to do these three peer evaluations (for Fall Training the last day is 10/31). Depending upon your schedule and motivation, you may or may not have the opportunity to complete this before you turn in your first timecard (most people don’t to be honest), and may have to wait until subsequent paychecks to receive your training pay.

Final Word

High Trails is a pretty good place to live and work. You’ll be a big part of helping close to 5,000 students this coming year realize that it’s okay to get dirty in the woods and even better to walk away with a sincere appreciation of nature.

With all of this idealism though, remember that this is a demanding JOB and that some days will seem more like work than play.

Our promise to you as an Instructor is that we will do everything we can to make your life here fun and rewarding. The rest will be what you make it, so come prepared to invest in the program and each other. Your energy will be well spent.

Calendar and Contact Information

2025/26 Calendar

Senior Admin start date: September 1
Admin start date: See your Employment Agreement
New Staff Fall Training: September 8-12 & September 15-19, plus overnight campout on Friday, September 19, ending at sunrise on September 20
First Timecard for Admin: September 12
Returning Instructor Training Day: September 19
CPR and First Aid offered: September 21
First Day of Fall Season: September 22
First Timecard for New Instructors: September 26
Thanksgiving Break: November 24-28
Last Day of Fall Season: December 19
New Staff Winter Training: January 5; 8am at Edwards dining hall.
First Day of Winter Season: January 6
Last Day of Winter Season: March 20
Spring Break: March 23-27
First Day of Spring Season: March 30
Last Day of Spring Season: May 29
School Year Staff Housing Closes: Sunset on May 31
Big Bear town housing is available for summer upon request.

Contact information

Main Office Mailing Address: PO Box 2640, Big Bear City, CA 92314
Phone/Fax: 800 428-1851 Email: work@dirtyclassroom.com
Your Mailing Address: Each housing option has its own PO Box for the staff to use. You will not know your address until the end of the first week of training. Please wait to have mail forwarded until you know your correct address.

Returning Staff

Arrival and housing

You are welcome to arrive anytime between the first day of September and the first day of program. The Housing Guru will be in contact in August to plan housing for the coming school year, as well as arrival information. The Housing Guru will also give you the information about the order housing is chosen and facilitate placement. Be advised that it might be a good idea to discuss lodging with your fellow returning staff. We reserve the right to move you around for extenuating circumstances. Here are houses and capacities:

Fox Lodge: 9
Apartment: 3
Cedar Tiny House: 2
Hemlock: 4
Country Club: 5
Holmes: 2
Sites Way: 4

New staff training notes for returners

If you’ve already been through this two-week gala fest of fun, you really don’t need to show up for this. You are, however, welcome to show your grubby faces off to the brand new staff. Come to dinner, say hi, maybe start thinking about housemates…that kind of stuff. If you’re going to show up to dinner, give the director a phone call just so we can put some more food out for you. You are more than welcome to attend the overnight camping trip at the end of the second week of training!

Returning Staff Training

This one-day training gets you back in the groove day. Check your contract for what day this is. Hosted by the program person, it will get you thinking about program and kids so that you’re not too stressed (or unprepared) when the short people actually do arrive. Pay is single duty, breakfast through dinner.

Health & Support Coordinator and Senior Instructor Training

This is a chance to figure out what the heck you’re going to do once the students arrive and you don’t have any students to take care of. Paperwork, work projects, talking and bonding. New and old admin alike…come one, come all. Pay is single duty for these days, breakfast through dinner or lunch through bedtime.

Final Word

Thanks for hanging around and making High Trails better…we’ll do all we can to make it worth your while for your returning time here. The one thing we need from you is to approach this new year with an open mind. We like change, and every year try to make new and worthwhile improvements to the program. We can only do this with your help and support. Some things will remain the same, and other things will…grow. Get ready…

El Niño and the San Bernardino Forest - Nick Engler

Unless you live under a rock, you may have heard that in 2015/16 we are supposed to be experiencing an El Niño winter. The term “El Niño” gets tossed around quite a bit and some of...

American Sign Language in Science - Sarah Beery

How do you teach science to a deaf student if sign language doesn't have a way to sign the word? Science is its own language with all the varying terms ranging from photosynthesis to camouflage to...

Non-flowering Plant Reproduction: Conifers – Ryne Tobar

Of the classes I get to teach at High Trails, my favorite is Plant Detectives. Plants are incredible organisms. While they might be immobile, plants are able to propagate, or reproduce, far beyond their immediate vicinity. When...

Purple Flying Elephants - Mark Lisak

Want to learn how to integrate storytelling into your classes? Read on... “Hello! You have hired me, Captain Mark, to take you to the Land of Purple Flying Elephants. The Purple Flying Elephants have taken your...

Teaching with Music - Jordan Rowell

"Alright class, it’s time to earn our beads for our Furry Friends class. Let’s review what you can remember about adaptations of mammals. John, tell me at least one characteristic of a mammal?" Uhhh…. Uhhh oh is...

Why Plants Are Important - Caroline Burdick

Did you know that this state is so large, so diverse, and geographically varied that over 5,800 plant species can call California home? This is about the same as all other states combined! We also have over 2,100 endemic...

Toothpaste: Show Don't Tell - Kelsey Wentling Once inside the cabin, everyone shivers off their jackets and eagerly starts buzzing around the warm haven: home for the next three or four nights. Soon after, buzzing turns to chatting and not far off chatting... Keeping Promises - Chris Emme Maybe we did learn everything we needed to know in Kindergarten. Being a good teacher means being a good person, but, despite the simplicity of an idea like honesty, it is incredibly difficult to embody... DIY! Build Your Own Forest - Alex Eisenreich What do you get when you combine the efficiency of a car assembly line with a tree hugger? It’s not a robo-hippie; it’s Afforrestt. Founded by Subhendu Sharma, Afforrestt is a company with one mission:... The Wave Of The Future - Rachael Blustein Before arriving at High Trails, I worked for the Philadelphia Water Department and The Philadelphia Wooden Boat Factory. These experiences have exerted a gravitational pull on me to everything and anything that pertains to water.... Trail Games #1- Kyle O'Dea So what do you do while hiking with a large group of students through the forest? Play games of course! Here at High Trails Outdoor Science School we have an arsenal of games we... The Other Oak Tree- Dawn Cook “You know everything, you’re a teacher!” In my 15+ years of teaching, I have heard that too many times to count. Know everything? No way...just the other day my knowledge came into question. I was tagging along... Crow Planet Book Review: Being Curious - Meg Borree Let me set the scene for you…. It’s 10:30 am, you are the instructor for a group of 14 fifth graders and you have a full day of hiking and environmental classes ahead of you. The... Welcome to Subirdia: Book Review - Mark Kerstens Ever wonder how our ever growing suburbanization and development affects wildlife populations? Have you heard that urban development is exclusively bad for bird populations? I thought so, too, until I read Welcome to Subirdia by... Growth Mindset - Alicia Imbrogna Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard. -Tim Notke How many times in your life have you encountered a situation that was frustrating or annoying and often appeared too difficult to overcome? Have... The Spirits of the Water: Loons - AleXANdra Barteldt There is a loonie legend about a small lake in rural Maine named Flying Pond. As the story goes, the Native Americans of the region returned to the northern lakes every season for fishing and... Analogies are to Teachers as Utility Belt is to Batman - Hollyann Duskin A streak of light burns bright and brief across the night sky. A collective gasp comes from the group of students huddled in the darkness as they exclaim, “a shooting star!” As we discuss that shooting... Finding Abundance in Scarcity: Pinyon Pine Harvest - Lyla Biddle Relocating to the mountains of Southern California from the abundant Pacific Northwest, where water flows year round and moss covers every surface, I expected foraging in such an arid climate to be quite sparse. Stumbling back... Art and the Environment: Rebecca Babel The relationship between art and nature may not be apparent to everyone, but art and the environment have been linked together as far back as the days of Plato and Aristotle when aesthetics was connected... How Do You ACT Environmentally Aware? - Jaimie Spetseris It’s my favorite environmental class at High Trails, and one that instructors are guaranteed to teach the most. In my mind, Environmental Awareness is the glue to all the pieces, the backbone to why care...

Popular Parent Links

Special Concerns: Information and form for special situations. Health Consent Form: required for every student attending High Trails. Medication Form: required if a student is bringing medication to High Trails. Discipline Form and Packing List: general information to prepare for your trip. Forms Video: check this out for a visual explanation of our forms. Printable Parent's Guide: used in lieu of the online Parent's Guide. Menu: a weekly list of the food up here.

Morphology Makes You a Science Wizard - Jenna Ikwe Mennen “Who knows one characteristic of a mammal?” says every High Trails instructor, once a week. “Warm-blooded!” answers an eager student, remembering to raise their hand only after already blurting out the words. Now, how do we... Attention Getters to Start Your Class - Hadley Conrad Imagine it is the third class of the day; about 3pm. Students have enjoyed a fact-filled day. However, they are loaded with new information and reasonably tired from a hike in the mountains with their... Trail Games #1- Kyle O'Dea So what do you do while hiking with a large group of students through the forest? Play games of course! Here at High Trails Outdoor Science School we have an arsenal of games we... Guided Questioning: Turning Wah into Wow - Mark Kerstens Ever have a cool fact, idea, or concept that comes up as you hike that you want to share with the students? These teachable moments happen all the time, and are a great way to... Props: Can’t live with them, can’t live without them… Shane Hyre If you talk to anyone in the outdoor education business – talk about props. Talk about the rubber chickens, the stuffed animals, the rope, the spots, the foam thingies… props have been the underestimated “magic... Don’t Rain on My Parade! Shannon Diaz Have you ever had to teach students while outside in the rain or snow ? Here at High Trails, we hike and teach our students in three different seasons with all sorts of weather. Whether we... Ode to Button-Pushers - Alex Rice Do you know the student who throws a stick when their instructor isn’t looking? The one who goes past the boundary their teacher very explicitly creates or breaks the rule that was thoroughly reviewed three... Toothpaste: Show Don't Tell - Kelsey Wentling Once inside the cabin, everyone shivers off their jackets and eagerly starts buzzing around the warm haven: home for the next three or four nights. Soon after, buzzing turns to chatting and not far off chatting... Why We Lorax - Penelope Burgess “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better, it’s not.” –Dr. Seuss What is The Lorax? Every Friday morning at High Trails Outdoor Science School, groups of 40-120 5th or... Frontloading and Debriefing - Shannon Diaz “On your mark, get set, go!” “Huh? I don’t even know what we’re playing!” Have you ever tried playing a game or doing an activity that wasn’t explained completely or didn't make sense to you? This can... American Sign Language in Science - Sarah Beery How do you teach science to a deaf student if sign language doesn't have a way to sign the word? Science is its own language with all the varying terms ranging from photosynthesis to camouflage to... Growth Mindset - Alicia Imbrogna Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard. -Tim Notke How many times in your life have you encountered a situation that was frustrating or annoying and often appeared too difficult to overcome? Have... Flip Distractions into Discussions: Verbal Jiu-Jitsu- Alex Eisenreich You are a Teacher. So you probably know that Random Tangent Student. The one that takes extra prompting to engage in class; the one that needs redirection to stay on task; the one who doesn’t volunteer... “Whatever GRABBSS their attention...” - Shane Hyre Team Discovery Hike: it's the first activity you do with your field group on their first day at High Trails. It's time for the group to discover who you are, where they are, and what... Analogies are to Teachers as Utility Belt is to Batman - Hollyann Duskin A streak of light burns bright and brief across the night sky. A collective gasp comes from the group of students huddled in the darkness as they exclaim, “a shooting star!” As we discuss that shooting... Scientific Method in Everything - Leslie Urban In sixth grade I remember losing a spelling bee because I did not know how to spell ‘hypothesis’. Our science teacher, Ms. Miers, had spent the entire fall semester pounding the Scientific Method into our heads... Your Name? I Don't Have A Clue - Haley Cushing Instructor: “Ok, who can tell me an example of a renewable resource?” Unnamed Student Raises Hand. Your mind goes blank. You look down at your attendance sheet. Back at the student. Back at the attendance sheet.... Improv-ing Education - Cass Language Friday afternoon— busses are delayed due to snow, and you find yourself with 15 students for an hour longer than you expected. Or maybe your boss tells you to lead a 10 minute activity for... Teaching with Music - Jordan Rowell "Alright class, it’s time to earn our beads for our Furry Friends class. Let’s review what you can remember about adaptations of mammals. John, tell me at least one characteristic of a mammal?" Uhhh…. Uhhh oh is... 3,2,1, Bonus Point! Caroline Blake “Single file line in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1,” This is what I shout to my students within the first 5 minutes of their arrival. The kids scurry to get into the best line that they... Building Communities - Jess Fangman “This needs to come from your heart,” I said in a soft tone. I watched anxiously as 12 different sets of eyes peered back at me in puzzlement. I had asked my cabin group of sixth... A Unique Class is a Memorable Class - Paul Adams A few weeks ago, I was attending a music festival in Santa Barbara. As I was walking around the camp ground, I met a man named Brian who invited me into his camp. We had... My Former Self - Shannon Diaz Have you ever thought back to when you were in fifth grade? What was the world like for you then? I remember when I was in fifth grade, and getting ready to go to Camp... Why Visit A Classroom? Tamara Perreault Working at High Trails, I quickly became a proponent of teaching outside. There are a lot of clear benefits. In California, class size is almost always 20 or more, but our groups are rarely more... Home - Tamara Perreault What makes a place a home? This can be a tough question. Think about it for a moment. When you say, “I feel like I’m at home” what makes you feel that way? 2,000 years ago...

Exploring Outer Space - Tori Jackson A full moon with a moon ring, photo by Tori Space, a place so vast and unknown that there are seemingly endless opportunities for exploration and learning. In this blog post, we'll... Finding Abundance in Scarcity: Pinyon Pine Harvest - Lyla Biddle Relocating to the mountains of Southern California from the abundant Pacific Northwest, where water flows year round and moss covers every surface, I expected foraging in such an arid climate to be quite sparse. Stumbling back... Speak Like A Yuhaviaatam - Ikwe Mennen You're staying in the Condor cabin? I think you mean Qwat cabin! Yuhaviaatam means “people of the pines” in their own language. They are the native peoples who lived on top of our mountain, in the... Food Waste & The Clean Plate Club - Sam Farrell Food waste is one of the most important things students learn about here at High Trails, but it is also easy to overlook. While most people don’t consider it to be a big deal, as... Where Have All The Monarchs Gone? - Melissa Mercier Monarch butterflies are amazing insects; they can change from caterpillar to beautiful winged creatures! What you may not know is they perform a second and equally amazing feat... Monarch butterflies perform a four generation long trek... Steller’s Jays: The birds you hate to love - Shannon Pappas When I say that I don’t always like Steller’s Jays, my students are always shocked. I, of course, understand where they are coming from. I remember when I first came to these mountains and was immediately... How Plants Can Be Medicine - Canot Walker High Trails is located at 7000 feet in the San Bernardino Mountain Range, and one of the first topics we learn about in Team Discovery Hike is who lived here before us. The Yuhaviatam arrived... Mars InSight Lander - Karen Solange Fraser Mars’ latest lander, InSight, launched in May 2018 and landed in November 2018. At approximately 5 feet long and 20 feet wide, it features two solar panels, two cameras, and three scientific instruments with a... Snake Reproduction - Mallory Schmackpfeffer When we talk about snakes, the assumption that we make is that all snakes reproduce by laying eggs, but that’s only part of the story! The truth is that only 70% of snakes lay eggs... Seed Dispersal of the Black Oak - Davíd Valencia Did you know that one of the largest populations of all Black Oak trees in southern California is in the San Bernardino National Forest? [1. Tyler, Claudia M., et al. “Demography and Recruitment Limitations of... Contour vs Downy Feathers – Frazer Winsted It is the middle of Feathered Friends class. After discussing that there are multiple feathers on a bird consisting of contour and downy feathers, one of my students says: “Mr. Frazer, what is the difference... Non-flowering Plant Reproduction: Conifers – Ryne Tobar Of the classes I get to teach at High Trails, my favorite is Plant Detectives. Plants are incredible organisms. While they might be immobile, plants are able to propagate, or reproduce, far beyond their immediate vicinity. When... Plastic is the New Black – Lillian Johnson Do you know what you're wearing? When discussing the natural origin of materials with students, discovering that plastics are typically made from crude oil – the same fossil fuel used to power our cars –... Benefits of Rock Climbing - Peter Le People ask me if climbing is a good way to stay in shape; I tell them I stay in shape to be good at climbing! Why do people climb? That is the question all instructors ask... Purpose of Pupils - Allison Hanson Over the summer, I went hiking with some students at summer camp. On the trail, we ran into a woman taking her goats out for a walk. Yes, GOATS. Goats are great. I was then... Over the Moon...Cycle - Suzanne Bosman “The common theme of calendar making is the desire to organize units of time to satisfy the needs and preoccupations of society. In addition to serving practical purposes, the process of organization provides a sense,... Outdoor Education & Line Dancing - Jade Koenigs When I say the words “Line Dancing”, the faces of my students scrunch up into a mixture of emotions. Some voice excitement, some voice disgust, but most faces bare the unmistakable feeling of apprehension, scared for... Can A Formula Predict Floods? - Anne Sweney “From where we stand the rain seems random. If we could stand somewhere else, we would see the order in it.” –Tony Hillerman For people living in climates that are dry and arid, understanding the water... We Don’t Need No GPS! Brad Brainard The day is September 11th, 2014. I am standing face to face with a weathered and worn wooden sign on the top of a mountain in the middle of Maine. The sign reads, in big,... Diggin Deep into the world of the Thatch-Mound Ant - Kyle W. Gray What is that mound thing? When sauntering about in the San Bernardino National Forest you may notice large mounds or domes made of grass, leaves, pine needles, and numerous other plant materials. What exactly are these... Replenishing the Water Cycle - Kevin Williams Did you know the scientific term for the water cycle is the hydrologic cycle? I was on a hike the other day and thought about the apple activity I do during our Water Wonders class to... Bird Sounds of Spring - Danny Walden Spring is here, and it's an exciting time! Our bird friends in the San Bernardino mountains begin to sing, and these year-round populations are complemented by a whole new host of migrants. To many people,... The Spirits of the Water: Loons - AleXANdra Barteldt There is a loonie legend about a small lake in rural Maine named Flying Pond. As the story goes, the Native Americans of the region returned to the northern lakes every season for fishing and... Archery in North America - Hannah Livezey As staff members at High Trails, we are offered opportunities to visit other outdoor schools and exchange ideas with others in the outdoor field with hopes to deliver the best possible curriculum to the students... Welcome to Subirdia: Book Review - Mark Kerstens Ever wonder how our ever growing suburbanization and development affects wildlife populations? Have you heard that urban development is exclusively bad for bird populations? I thought so, too, until I read Welcome to Subirdia by...