Environmental education at ECS happens primarily in the Science classes; however, all teachers infuse concepts of sustainability in their

individual curricula. Here is a detailed list of grade level activities:

Pre-K
We continue to start them early at Eagle Cove School! The Pre-K class experiences the woods next to our school as much as possible. They investigate spiders and insects, leaves and their colors, and, of course, dinosaurs. In the winter (as in the past), we still visit the milkweed garden (planted the previous year) to collect seeds. A few weeks later, the students plant the seeds in peat pots so they can watch them grow in the classroom. When the weather finally warms up, we then plant these pots in the Butterfly Garden. The students are responsible for watering caring for the young milkweed.

The Pre-K teachers use the Nature Trail to study the five senses. Additionally the teachers read a number of books about nature and planting. Sometimes these books are followed-up with in-class planting activities. Along with the Kindergarteners, these students make food treats during the holiday season to leave outside on trees and bushes for our nighttime campus creatures. This Night Tree project serves as a good follow-up to the class-shared book, The Night Tree by Eve Bunting.

Kindergarten
The first thing that the Kindergarteners want to see when they get back to school is the milkweed garden. And the first thing they notice is that the plants are taller than they are! The students scour the plants looking for young caterpillars. When they find one, they carefully remove the leaf its on and take it inside to care for it. Each day the containers of caterpillars have to be cleaned and fed by the class. Finally, the caterpillars change into chrysallises, and a few days later

Kindergarten students also visit the pier to observe the aquarium filled with fish, oysters, and crabs (which the fifth graders filled after a seining adventure). They also will go out with their classroom teacher to observe the signs of the changing seasons along the nature trail. They raise tadpoles in the spring. They also talk about Earth Hour annually in their classroom, taking part in class by turning off the lights for an hour. They work with the Pre-K making food treats for the nighttime animals.

They also made small solar ovens and melted chocolate for their snack.

First Grade
The first graders raise three baby diamondback terrapins. Each week, the students measure and weigh them, and then enter the numbers in a journal. Of course, the highlight of the year is the trip to the Chesapeake Bay to release the terrapins in the spring. It is an all day trip for the students, but they never complain. Its a bittersweet moment when the terrapins hit the water and swim away.

In their classroom, first graders read the book A Frog in a Bog by Karma Wilson. They then go out in the nature trail and investigate our on-campus wetland area. They also do readings on different wild animals, then go out and do a campus investigation of tracks, scats, and other signs of creatures. Some of the animals they have found signs of are egrets, squirrels, otter, deer, and raccoon.

Second Grade
The second graders are in charge on the wooded area and the Nature Trail. They cut back the greenbrier, haul and spread wood chips on the path, hang extra birdhouses as necessary, and maintain our three rain gardens. They also create a leaf key for trees located along the Nature Trail.

The second graders routinely go out bird watching. In 2013, this class built and installed a bird feeding station in conjunction with the Cornell Backyard Birding Project. They collect and send their bird data to Cornell University.

Third Grade
The third graders raise oysters as one of their year-long projects. Each week, the students shake the sediment off of the cages and measure the oysters. In the spring we take an all day boat ride up the Magothy River to release the oysters. While the class is taking care of the oysters on the pier, they are also collecting data on the temperature, salinity, and clarity of the river (no matter how cold).

The third grade also performs the weekly task of collecting and counting all of the juice pouches from the school. These are sent to Terracycle, an organization that repurposes them to make backpacks, pencil pouches, and other items.

In 2013, in conjunction with the Parents Association, they started collecting aluminum cans. Parents are encouraged to bring in their cans, which are then taken to a recycling center to be sold. This, in turn, serves as a fundraiser for the Parents Association.

For the last two years the third grades design, build, and use a solar powered oven. This year they baked pizzas and nachos for their lunch. Also in 2013, 3rd grade was used for a documentary film for Japanese Public television program. The topic of the film was sato umi (which means human interactions with coastal ecosystems). Publication date is set for sometime 2014. In class, students limit their use of lights on sunny days as the classroom has a multitude of windows. They do several composition and dictation writings on environmental issues such as The 3 Rs, conservation, endangered animal studies, and famous environmentalists.

Fourth Grade
The fourth graders have started growing emergent grasses on floating gardens off our pier. They are also in charge of collecting paper across the school for our recycling program.

This year, fourth graders will be building an aluminum can solar heater. This will be used to heat classrooms. The materials for this will be reused aluminum cans, reused glass from an exterior door, and reused computer fans.

In 2012, in conjunction with the class service project, fourth graders have been working at nearby Beachwood Park to build and install benches, planting trees (Atlantic White Cedars), and making tree identification plaques.

They also learn to cast net off the pier. They collect and identify the creatures that they catch. These animals are then returned to their river home.

Fifth Grade
The fifth graders are in charge of the school-wide composting program. Each Friday, the students collect the compost buckets from each classroom, weigh it, record the data in Excel, and empty it into our compost heap.

Year round (yes, even in February), the students drag a seine net through the Magothy River. The students identify the type of animals found, record the results, and release everything back into the river.

The fifth graders also build or make something for the school as a parting gift. In the past they have built a holding tank for our pier, a native plant garden in the center of our drive circle, the campus recycling center, and a windmill.

For Earth Week, the fifth grade students create environmental public service announcements using their iPads. They end the year with a canoe trip around the north end of Gibson Island. In addition to being outdoors and experiencing the canoe ride, they also take water temperature data and go seining.