On October 23, 2018,  19 students from the Peaks School in Flagstaff had an outing to the Elden family homestead site and Elden Spring on Little Elden Trail.

 

Students had a big day of learning! We learned the history of the Elden family and other homesteaders like them. Why they came to Flagstaff and why, in this case, they eventually left. Students also explored the natural resources of the south face of Elden Mountain and discussed which Fundamental Human Needs the Elden family might have been meeting using those resources.

 

To connect our history and biology learning to language arts, students then played a game called Writing Wild. Clipboards with different literary devices such as simile, metaphor, or personification are placed on plants or near historical artifacts students have been looking at. For each clipboard they write a sentence using that device in relation to the object. After they write the sentence they fold the paper so the next person can’t see what has been written. After everyone takes their turns we unfold the paper and read aloud everyone’s ideas. Strung together the sentences sometimes make funny stories!

 

We ended the day with a round of camouflage and making a sound map from our Jr. Explorer handbooks. A fun day of place-based learning for all!