The Importance of Outdoor Education
One out of every three bites of food we eat is dependent on bees for pollination. Last week, Idaho Business for the Outdoors helped celebrate Earth Day by hosting their first 'Adopt-a-Pollinator Garden Event.' Fifth and sixth-grade students from Horizon Elementary in Boise walked over to Mariposa Park to learn about the economic, ecological and social value and benefits of pollinators to our food supply.
Horizon Elementary students showed up engaged, curious and ready to explore their neighborhood park and pollinator garden. Albertsons, one of our business members, volunteered to sponsor this event. Kent Frazee, Albertsons' Produce Sales Manager, brought various fruits and vegetables kids love to eat and explained how they wouldn't be on Albertsons' shelves without bees. Sally Symms, of Symm's Fruit Ranch explained how their fruit ranch rents and depends on honey bees to ensure pollination and adequate fruit tree yields. Then the kids moved through three hands-on science stations which included a pollinator scavenger hunt, pollinator garden maintenance, and a pollinator mapping station that included a live honey bee viewing hive supplied by Kevin Duesman, a member of the Treasure Valley Bee Club.
This event fits within a broader goal we have to connect more kids to outdoor spaces and parks near them for learning and connecting with nature. Research shows that children's school performance increases when children learn outdoors and especially through hands-on outdoor learning. Studies also indicate outdoor learning experiences are the foundation of raising the next generation of active citizens who take care of the outdoors.
We want to extend a special thank you to Albertsons for sponsoring and volunteering at this event, as well as our community partners who helped make this event possible: Boise Parks and Recreation, the Ada Soil and Water Conservation District, the Treasure Valley Bee Club, and Symm’s Fruit Ranch. This event created a bit of a buzz in the Idaho Press and on KTVB7; story links are below as well.
MEDIA LINKS:
Students receive educational experience ahead of Earth Day (Idaho Press, 4/22/2022)
"Around 3,000 bees swarmed inside a wooden structure at Boise’s Mariposa Park on Wednesday. The queen bee, painted with a white dot, moved near the top of the hive."
Idaho Business for the Outdoors hosts first 'Adopt-a-Pollinator event (KTVB7)
"Fifth and sixth-grade students at Horizon Elementary went to a local park to learn about the economic, ecological, and social value of pollinators in our community."