Middle School Experiential Watershed Education Programs
With the help of volunteers and environmental educators, RCA leads annual watershed education field trip programs that reach all 6th graders in Albemarle County’s five public middle schools, and all 7th graders in the City of Charlottesville’s public middle school.
Students visit a local waterway near their school and participate in scientific water quality testing, benthic macroinvertebrate sampling, active learning games, and nature exploration activities. Students evaluate how the condition of a watershed impacts stream health through data-driven comparisons of waterways in different locations.
This program ensures that nearly all middle school students in the Rivanna River watershed can benefit from a field experience that promotes a deeper understanding of the importance of stream health, inspires watershed stewardship, and builds a greater sense of confidence and connection to the outdoors, leading to improved health of the watershed and the community. This program also promotes environmental stewardship by directly engaging students in watershed improvement action projects, like tree planting, whenever possible.