Tag Archives | Furry Friends

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 introduced to Pearl the Goat. As I was gazing into her eyes, I noticed her pupils were horizontal. I thought […]

Continuing Education with a Bat Presentation – Shane Hyre

While Outdoor Education draws in staff that has a passion for being outdoors, working with students, and understanding the natural sciences, one of the continual challenges for us at High Trails is finding new and innovative ways to provide opportunities for our staff to grow. One solution to this problem is to bring in fun […]

Where Did the Big Bears Go? – Nicholas Spinelli

I want you to picture a mountain in your mind’s eye. It’s what our students see the moment they step off the bus here at High Trails. From then on, their imaginations (and questions) are inspired by this majestic scenery around them. Soaring peaks, towering treetops, crystal clear lakes and streams, and… bears?! Yes, bears […]

Camouflage! – Hope Batcheller

“Camouflage!” I yell, and start counting to twenty. I hear the rustling of students scattering in every direction, rushing to find good hiding places behind thick-trunked trees or downed logs. It is the middle of our “Furry Friends” class, and we have been discussing mammalian adaptations to avoid predation. The activity, Camouflage, is like a […]

Egg-Laying Mammals – Meghan Barrett

What are the characteristics of a mammal? When I present this question to my students, they are instantly excited to share their knowledge of these awesome creatures. We end up with a list of traits describing what makes a mammal a mammal. They are warm-blooded, they have hair on their bodies, they give milk to […]

Coyotes – Dan Smith

It’s about 8 o’clock on Monday evening—the first night of program—and my cabin group and I are sitting outside for Nocturnal Nations class. The forest is thick and dark around us, only thinning out above where the stars make silhouettes of the pine trees. We’re bundled up in jackets, hats, and gloves, but I can […]

Super Hero Squirrels – Alex Kaklamanos

Tom Brown Jr., a famous tracker and naturalist, said, “We learned to be patient observers like the owl. We learned cleverness from the crow, and courage from the jay, who will attack an owl ten times its size to drive it off its territory. But above all of them ranked the chickadee because of its […]

Why Bees Are Disappearing - Jaimie Spetseris

Really Cool Thing about the Spring Season: new plants pop up left and right, and beautiful flowers are in bloom. Safety Consideration of the Spring Season: it’s the time of year when we must warn our...

Keeping It Fresh In Year Three - Nasser Rihan

It is that time of year again. The leaves are falling from the oak trees, the wind is becoming cooler and ever more crisp, and for me that means one thing: another year at High...

Big Bear Lake Field Trip - Jessica Fangman These days most of the California population is concerned about water. Are we going to run out? Who is in charge of our water resources? How can we conserve and protect what we have? As... Talking With School Teachers - Nick Miller Like most of you, I often times wonder about the impact we make on students and what they actually learn and take away from their experience here at High Trails. We are in the unfortunate position... Find A Feather...Pick It Up? - Shane Hyre Occasionally, walking through the wilderness, I find some bird feathers on the ground, due in no small part to my work in the woods. However, coming upon a feather the likes of which I had... Hiking with a USFS Botanist - Jaimie Spetseris/Mark Lisak Working at an outdoor science school in the San Bernardino Mountains has some perks. Aside from hiking in the forest, teaching students about nature, coexisting in a healthy world, breathing fresh mountain air, and going... 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... Stepping Outside of the Circle: Growing Comfort Zones - Jordan Rowell The mission statement for High Trails that is prominently displayed on all of the shirts we wear around is “Learning how we can all fit together on one healthy planet”. I believe that for all... On the line of Wildfire - Kate Leaf Exploring the Research on How Fire is Changing the West Late summer of 2013 brought the most destructive day of California’s Rim Fire, when wind and prolonged drought conditions created an inferno that transformed 30,000 acres... It's Nice To Share: Chris Wright A little while back I got a call from another local outdoor school asking if they could come talk to us and pick our brains to help them figure out some of their current staffing... 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... A New Pair of Yuhaviatam Shoes - Colin Veerman Ahhh... there’s nothing like a new pair of shoes. The smell, the fresh laces, the feeling like you could conquer the world. Right now I’m asking you to imagine yourself in a new pair of... Continuing Education with a Bat Presentation - Shane Hyre While Outdoor Education draws in staff that has a passion for being outdoors, working with students, and understanding the natural sciences, one of the continual challenges for us at High Trails is finding new and... Taking Applications For Granted - Driz Cook I believe in not taking things for granted. In the early years of High Trails, staff would start to talk about the next school year and I would stop them in their tracks. "If there is... 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... Who are these "Support Coordinators"? Noel Leon The Coordinator is an active manager of daily operations, ensuring that the program runs smoothly and efficiently. The Program Coordinator provides a vision, plan, and leadership for program development, training, and performing evaluation on staff. Here... I Am the Youngest Administrator Here - Sarah Wood I am one of three Medic Coordinators at High Trails, which, in a nutshell, means I am in charge of student health and safety for the duration of a school’s stay here. At 23 years... A Science Fair Experience - Dawn Cook In education today one of the big buzzwords is STEM - Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. A study by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) determined that female interest in STEM majors declines... Let's Go Play - Rebecca Babel “When the only open spaces you’ve seen are parking lots, and you’re used to hearing screeching tires instead of rustling leaves, a simple patch of woods can be an astoundingly liberating experience.” – Gregory Michi... Waterflies - Stephen Perry In our Little World class here at High Trails we discuss three types of decomposers: Bacteria, Fungi, and Invertebrates/Scavengers. We do in fact find all sorts of interesting critters, both growing and crawling around the...

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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.

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... 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... 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... Science Fiction Is a Teaching Tool - Jake Sheaffer As instructors at High Trails we are constantly trying to relate the material that we teach back to the student’s daily lives. Sometimes this is difficult, because not all students understand why topics like...

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... 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... 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... Rock Climber or Amateur Geologist? - Michael Perez Is igneous bliss or are all the little sediments of rock knowledge metamorphosing climbers into rock experts? Ha! As rock climbers, we experience many different types of rocks when we go to climb at various crags... Bald Eagles and Their Comeback! Brandon Bortzer In 1963, scientists estimated a total of just 417 nesting pairs of bald eagles survived in the lower 48 states. The emblem of the United States since 1782 and the only eagle endemic to North America,...