Water: A Natural History, by Alice Outwater, is a thorough guide to how humans have dismantled the fragile water systems of the land, and has added so much more depth to my Water Wonders classes. Our class Water Wonders, one of my favorite classes to teach, contains not only basics about the water cycle, where […]
“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 access this student’s prior knowledge and increase it with the fancy science word “endothermic?” Are fancy science words important, […]
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 forest that High Trails calls home, long before we lived here. You may have heard them called Serrano, which […]
November 26, 2018. Cerritos Elementary: a sunny and clean school with the typical Californian outdoor-facing classrooms and open-air cafeteria. The plants are well-manicured and uniform, well-behaved inside their brick borders. I try to imagine doing Adopt a Plant with the even rows of roses and jasmine, and fail. I am here to watch Erika Cook […]
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 that can total anywhere from 1,200 to 3,000 miles! 1 2 The monarch is the only known butterfly to […]
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 mystified by these beautiful blue birds. However, after living in these mountains for a season, I have grown tired […]
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 add extra information into your lesson plan while engaging the students in critical thinking. When I first started teaching at […]
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 items” facilitators use to distract participants one way while getting them to step outside their comfort zone the other way. […]
Let me start by saying *SPOILER ALERTS* ahead. The Mountain Between Us is an adventure movie released in October 2017. The movie begins its journey when two strangers discover they are both in need of a connecting flight on the way to their separate destinations after an incoming storm causes a cancellation for their booked […]
One Strange Rock is a ten-episode docuseries hosted by actor Will Smith that tells the stories of the planet Earth. It has beautiful imagery that entices the viewer, and interviews with astronauts about their time in space. Some of the most interesting episodes to me were the ones about the moon, the sun, and the […]
Providing Important Answers to the Important Questions for the Youth The Three Questions is a marvelous adaptation of a story originally written by Leo Tolstoy of the same name. Jon J. Muth takes the wheel, adapting the timeless story into a format appropriate for young children. The narrative in the adaptation is simple, yet effective. […]
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 in Southern California approximately 2,500 years ago, and lived off the land until European influence arrived in the 18th century. […]
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 robotic arm to place the instruments on the surface. 1 This is space exploration’s first attempt to study the interior […]
“Why on Earth do you think,” I love to ask of students, “do we solve team puzzles at Science School?” There is no right answer. Their answers run the gamut. “To know how to communicate without talking!” and “To study simple machines!” they suggest, or “Because it’s…fun…maybe?” I tell them they are all correct. Personally, […]
One of the perks of High Trails is that we run on a normal school schedule. When it was our time to have Spring Break, twelve of us banded together and drove 9.5 hours to Moab, Utah. What were we going to do? We were gearing up to spend 5 days paddling canoes on the […]
If you were driving on Highway 38 on a Friday afternoon and wondered what 25 adults, all wearing the same shirt, were doing with dirt, logs, rocks, and tools, you were likely not the only one. Allow me to introduce the High Trails staff on this Friday afternoon, performing their seasonal trail work on the […]
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 1 – the other 30% give live birth and develop their young internally in a couple of different ways. What […]
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 High Trails is surrounded by these majestic beings and we get to view the their colorful beauty. The Black Oak, like all other plants, needs the help of biotic and […]
Have you ever felt small in comparison to the growing problems we face as a society? As one person trying to make a difference on this planet there is not a lot that can be accomplished; you must change the minds of your peers. In order to change the minds of others you must start […]
In Northern India, stationed unassumingly over the sacred headwaters of the Ganges River, stands the Shark’s Fin on Mount Meru. This particular piece of mountain has witnessed more failed summit attempts by elite climbing teams than any other ascent in the Himalayas which makes this particular climb both a nightmare and an irresistible calling for […]
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 between the contour feathers and the down feathers on a bird?” My answer describes that contour feathers are the outermost […]
Trail Name: Glory Ridge Trail Forest Service Designation: 2N15 (See picture below. Route described is actually a non-system route. Glory Ridge Trail is 1W02). Total Distance: 1.7 miles (with an additional 0.5 including the walk from the parking area to the trailhead). Overview: A short hike with a slight downhill on the way out that […]
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 I ask about plant reproduction many of my students think of flowers. For flowers, a pollinator such as […]
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 – is astonishing to most. Revealing that much of their clothing is also made from this same crude oil is nearly […]
If there was one sentence you could say to someone that would make their day brighter, would you make a point of saying it? Would you take thirty seconds to organize your field group to shout, “You’re awesome, JD!” as you walk past the climbing specialist putting away the ropes and harnesses? Yes? Good work; […]
How should YOU feel about SeaWorld? The documentary, Blackfish, was released in 2013. It explores the life of Tilikum, a performing orca that had killed two trainers and one civilian in his lifetime. The film, which is very anti-captivity, opens with a recorded police report of a killer whale having attacked a trainer. Now I […]
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 their students at the beginning of the climbing class we have here at High Trails. Most answers consist of […]
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 introduced to Pearl the Goat. As I was gazing into her eyes, I noticed her pupils were horizontal. I thought […]
“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, however illusory, of understanding and controlling time itself. Thus calendars serve as a link between mankind and the cosmos.” 1 […]
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 what the future holds. Regardless of their first thoughts of Line Dancing, this kinesthetic lesson affects students way more […]
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 times before the activity? Maybe you were that student! These students who tend to consistently “push buttons,” and are often […]
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 turns to gossip. Middle school children are no strangers to gossip. Seemingly every student, willingly or otherwise, partakes in […]
The beautiful, winding, scenic, mountainous Highway 38 leading up to High Trails is very much a time portal into another world for our students. To better understand why, I’d like to teach you a bit more about time travel using a story by Herbert George Wells, the author of War of the Worlds, The Invisible […]
“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 6th graders gather in an outdoor amphitheater, sit on wooden benches, and watch a play. It is the […]
Throughout my life, I have seen many movies created from beloved books from my childhood, including, but not limited to: Holes, The Harry Potter series, A Wrinkle in Time, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, BFG, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Giver, The Lorax, James and the Giant Peach, Stardust, Where the Wild Things Are, The Hobbit, […]
Leading students into the forest at night, though exciting for me as an instructor, proves to be a great test of courage for most 5th and 6th graders. When I ask students to, “Please turn off your flashlights.” I am immediately contested with 14 voices pleading against my request. When they finally give in and […]
“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 cycle is necessary. California has such extremes in weather, ranging from wild fires and droughts to flooding. While it […]
Right foot, kick. Left foot, kick. Reposition ice axe. Repeat. You hear the wind come roaring over the notch in the ridge and brace yourself as it comes whipping down the couloir. You lean into the 45 degree snow covered slope until the gust subsides and then continue slogging ever upwards. It was April Fool’s […]
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, white letters, “Katahdin”. Below this are more words and numbers on the sign. The words that stand out to me […]
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 strange structures? Believe it not, these somewhat odd structures were built by ants and serves as their comfy home! […]
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 demonstrate how much fresh water is on earth. Using an apple to represent the earth, I cut 30% off […]
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 successful hunter-gathering. One particular year, they discovered a lake they had never found before, a lake that provided them the […]
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 that come to visit us. Recently, I took advantage of one of these opportunities and visited a site roughly two […]
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 crepuscular. Teaching science through American Sign Language (ASL) adds to the challenge because it has never developed standardized vocabulary […]
Ahhhh… yes. Winter. That beautiful time of year when there is nothing better than snuggling up by the fireplace with a cup of hot cocoa and your favorite book, while the snow falls gently outside. Perhaps it is the time of year where you enjoy hearty meals around the dinner table with your family, while […]
In the culture of the American southwest, it could be said that Joshua Trees enjoy something akin to celebrity status. The deserts of California are filled with them. Their image now adorns t-shirts, stickers, and signs. There are roads named Joshua Tree. There is a town named Joshua Tree. There is, of course, even a […]
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 you ever passed on trying something new because you were afraid you’d look foolish? In Mindset: The New Psychology […]
As instructors at High Trails, we play an integral role in the development of a newfound love and appreciation of nature in our students. While these young people are in our stead, we see evidence of this daily. But what happens once that bus pulls away and heads back to the city? What happens once […]
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 John M. Marzluff. This book discusses various aspects of the impact of urbanization across the globe on not only bird […]
It isn’t very often that you get the opportunity to work for a company that places a heavy emphasis on your growth – both personally and professionally. It is even less often that your employer gives you a full day’s pay to spend a Friday hanging out with fifty of your closest friends watching Olympic […]
