Hands-on experience

More than 30,000 migrating birds stop at the Upper Newport Bay Ecological

reserve to rest and regroup as they travel through the Pacific Flyway,

extending from Alaska to Mexico.

But a flock of a different sort descended on the Newport Beach reserve

last week: more than 150 Fountain Valley third-graders.

The students from Courreges Elementary School -- along with a small army

of parents, teachers and naturalists -- spent six hours traversing the

reserve as part of Orange County’s Inside the Outdoors science study

programs.

The comprehensive day includes bird-watching, archeology and botany

lessons, Courreges schoolteacher Linda Shea said.

“The kids become very knowledgeable about the area’s ecosystem,” Shea

said. “Often they come back with their parents and teach them about the

reserve.”

At one of the four learning stations during the lesson, students sift

through mock archeological sites for American Indian artifacts.

Along the way, they are taught by one of the program’s naturalists about

the Tongva tribe that lived along the banks of the estuary hundreds of

years ago.

Students are also offered binoculars and a bird-watching lesson.

The 752-acre reserve is home to endangered birds such as the brown

pelican and the peregrine falcon.

Shea said the interactive focus of the program and preparatory lessons

given by teachers keeps the students captivated by the field trip.

“We prepare months ahead of time,” Shea said. “By the time the kids

actually arrive at the reserve, they are already knowledgeable about the

ecosystem.”

Shea also credits the program’s naturalists for stoking the students’

enthusiasm.

She said they are both extremely knowledgeable and good teachers.

“I love my job. It is great when you see you are getting through to the

kids,” lead naturalist Terry Kiesewetter said.

Each naturalist leads a group of 12 to 17 students along the learning

tour.

One of the main aims of the program is to make the students

environmentally conscious.

“Students are taught how the food chain works and the interdependence of

the various species,” Shea said.

Students’ interest shined as their arms shot up to answer the

naturalist’s questions.

The naturalists use scavenger hunts for different plant species and

digging through mud at the ecology station to make learning enjoyable.

The Inside the Outdoors initiative started in 1973 with the outdoor

science school.

Today it has grown to include 13 programs and 10 field sites throughout

Orange County.