Tag Archives | Staff

Many Hands Make FUN Work: Wildhorse Trail – Barbara Bemis

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 […]

Weekends: A Snowy Ascent of Mt. Whitney – Mark Kerstens

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 […]

On Their Home Turf at Killian Elementary – Malcom Moniz

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 […]

Work Day Friday at a Bike Race – Christina Shores

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 […]

Cougar Crest to Bertha Peak – Christine Kler

Teaching outdoor education during the week…and living the outdoor lifestyle on the weekends. Go hike a popular and beautiful Big Bear classic trail, Cougar Crest. Trail Name: Cougar Crest Trail to Bertha Peak Forest Service Designation: 1E22 Total Distance: 8 miles, round trip Overview: Scenic hike that works its way up mountain ridges to a […]

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 all over Southern California. Many climbers don’t even think twice about the differences between these rocks, much less the […]

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 as young women enter college. {1. https://www.aauw.org/files/2013/02/Why-So-Few-Women-in-Science-Technology-Engineering-and-Mathematics.pdf] As a woman and mother of a teen daughter, I especially hope to encourage […]

Hidden Gem: Big Bear Historical Museum – Christine Kler

The first class students have at High Trails is the Team Discovery Hike, where they get to know each other better, learn about the plants and animals native to the region…and hear about the history of Big Bear. The local history always interests students and they ask awesome questions which, until recently, I could not […]

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 […]

Take a Trip to the Big Bear Discovery Center! – Jaimie Spetseris

Do you… Think you know it all about Big Bear? Want to learn more about local natural history to beef up your first class with students, our Team Discovery Hike? Seek additional knowledge about the San Bernardino Forest flora and fauna to apply to your Plant Detectives, Feathered Friends, and Furry Friends classes? Need to […]

Telescope Peak, Snow, and Death Valley – Colleen McDonald

The biting, icy wind was fierce and growing stronger by the minute. Gusts howled over the ridgeline we walked, slamming into us with a force great enough to drive me to my knees. I huddled in the snow and waited for the gust to pass, certain that if I stood up I would be knocked […]

A Reflection on Peer Mentoring – Carolyn Scarpelli

All of these excuses didn’t matter…Deep down I knew there were a few things I needed to work on, but I hadn’t figured out exactly what I needed to do to fix the problems I was having while teaching. The peer mentoring program at High Trails Outdoor Science School is a way for instructors to […]

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 on weekend adventures, we also get to learn about the forest from true professionals. For once, WE got to be […]

Showcasing the Dream at the AEOE Conference – Dawn Cook

When High Trails was approached by Amanda Martin last spring with the offer to have the AEOE (Association of Environmental and Outdoor Education) Southern Fall Conference at our site, we thought “Why Not? It might be kind of fun.” Little did we know just how fun it would be. 80 outdoor educators + a crisp […]

Green Grass?! My Journey to Clara J. King Elementary – Alex Rice

“The grass is always greener on the other side.” I have ardently disliked that phrase, not because it is cliché but because of how painfully true it is with regard to human nature. Our incessant comparison of everything inevitably brings us dissatisfaction. I am no exception. As a passionate instructor at High Trails who loves […]

Wastewater: A Field Trip to the Poop Plant – Laura Hughes

Have you ever flushed a toilet or turned on a sink and wondered to yourself, where DOES the water go once it has disappeared from sight? Well, the instructors at High Trails Outdoor Science School were wondering the same thing, so they loaded up into their magical Subaru school busses and headed to the Big […]

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. Nothing. Their name? You don’t have a clue. Embarrasing. Instructor: “Umm… yes… you.” This has happened to everyone. Whether […]

Summer Camp? No Way! – Shannon Diaz

“So you’re a camp counselor?” “No, Ma! I teach at an Outdoor Science School.” “Isn’t that the same thing?” We instructors at High Trails Outdoor Science School get asked this question time and time again when anyone asks us what we do for a living. It can be frustrating because we are NOT a summer […]

Change the Channel to Island Time – Hollyann Duskin

Imagine an island paradise: rolling hills and exquisite wildflowers, turquoise water crashing into rocky sea caves, and creatures found nowhere else on earth. Although this may sound like a faraway dream, it’s actually right here in our backyard! Channel Islands National Park Channel Islands National Park encompasses five of the eight islands off the coast […]

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 for High Trails instructors, we sought to expand our minds and learn more about the the Muncipal Water District, the […]

The Road Not Taken – Caroline Blake

As a recent graduate from the University of Vermont I was unsure of my career path. Right out of college I was offered a lab technician position for a Fortune 500 Company making over 50,000 dollars a year. They even offered me an apartment in the city. At the same time, I was offered a […]

Games at Work – Austin Bunn

Dressed in a ridiculous uniform of all green, I stood crouched behind a bush looking out into a sea of red. I looked over my shoulder as one of my teammates snuck up to join me. We quickly whispered back and forth and devised a plan of attack. I ran to the right while she […]

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 old, I am the youngest of the High Trails administrators, in addition to being one of the youngest people on […]

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...

Of Mice and Mothers - Chris Emme

Little dudes and dudettes in many mammalfamilies need role models to teach positive behavior. Question: If you knew your interactions with students were having a genetic impact on the way they behaved...

Colette's Top 5 High Trails Blog Posts - Colette Boylan

Some of us are past camp counselors. Some of us are artists. Some of us are biologists, and some of are simply lovers of nature. Whatever type of person our instructors may have been before...

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...

Some of Our Scaly Friends - Eben Coenen

There are 8,240 species of reptiles in the world, inhabiting every continent except Antarctica. Though our students seldom see them because of their timid nature, reptiles of different shapes and sizes inhabit many parts of our forest....

A Life Lesson from My Brother: Heather Plazak

Can you imagine being 8 years old and being told you have a disease that has no cure? Or finding out that your life expectancy is at best ten more years? Can you imagine living in...

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...

50 Ways To Survive Winter In The San Bernardino National Forest - Graham Goodman

1. Waterproof everything you own from head to toe. 2. Borrow a sled from a coworker. 3. Purchase snow chains for your car. 4. Spend at least one day on Bear and Summit. 5. Take a daytrip to Redlands,...

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...

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...

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... Constantly Learning and Lichen It! - Mari Schramm Almost 150 years ago, a Swiss botanist proposed something crazy: he said that the simple living thing called “lichen” was actually 2 different kinds of living things working together. Simon Schwendener proposed that a lichen was... Younger Minds, Clearer Hearts: Book Review - Nora Finch My choice to follow a career path with children comes from an attraction to their optimism and curiosity. Unlike many adults, kids see the world as a place full of possibilities. The stories from the book,... Nature Guide Largely put together by staff member Laura Cerrato, here's an old fashioned, printable field guide full of all the animals, plants, rocks and things you might find in our neck of the woods. Birds Battle to be heard over Noise Pollution - Gabriela Antonova To many, pollution is something dark and disgusting that poisons clean air or pristine rivers, like Dr. Seuss’s Smogulous Smog or Gluppity-Glup. However, pollution can be invisible, sly, and can even inhibit communication. We’re talking... We're off like a herd of turtles - Tim Bryant ...Said my grandfather as all four of my cousins and I finally piled into the car for the drive down to the Texas coast for the weekend. Packing for these trips, which we took on... The World Turned Upside Down- Melissa Fitzgerald Have you ever seen one of those pictures, when you look at it straight on the image is of a beautiful woman and when you stare at it another way you see a haggard old... 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... The Rise of the Pine Beetle - Benjamin Feinson Every week, one or more of my students will discover intricate mazes and pathways chewed through dead pine branches on the forest floor. I use this discovery to teach my students how just one seemingly... How to Manage Your Peers - Carolyn Tallman I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people. -Mahatma Gandhi Throughout the years I have had the opportunity to lead a variety of groups ranging from students to...

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.

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,...