Upper and Middle School scientists recently collaborated to share knowledge and learn more about the MICDS prairie area on the north end of campus.
Under the direction of Middle School Science Teacher Callie Bambenek and Upper School Science Teacher Christine Pickett, sixth-grade science students embarked on a prairie inquiry similar to one that the eleventh graders did last fall. Several juniors joined the Middle Schoolers to discuss and explore the Upper School prairie over a handful of sessions.
They broke into small groups and walked the length of campus to the prairie to collect data using quadrats made in the Middle School Makerspace, taking photos to discover common species. From field notes about the different species to an analysis of the data of species type and coverage in the area, the Upper Schoolers were able to help the sixth-graders effectively use the quadrats, learn the common species for this particular prairie, and calculate the percent coverage of each species.
Ellie Ilko-Stiehr ’25 enjoyed the process of working with her younger schoolmates. “I really enjoyed talking to the sixth graders and helping them understand the process of working in the prairie and taking pictures of the species there. The prairie is such an amazing thing that we have here at MICDS, and it is really nice that the sixth graders will be able to see all the flowers and plants in bloom. I feel like the most important thing while helping out the sixth graders was telling them what my successes and challenges were so that they could have a more enjoyable experience and collect all of the data they need.”
“I enjoyed seeing all of the different plants and how lush places were versus how bare other places were,” said Connor Berkes ’30. “The most challenging part so far was making a quadrat with a PVC pipe and string. Stringing the string through the holes in the PVC pipe frame was difficult. I also discovered that there can be so many different colors in a prairie, and tan isn’t one of them (I didn’t know prairies were green).”
Anna Giles ’25 loved helping the younger students with the prairie project. She said, “It was a cool way to share what I learned while researching the prairie as a junior to the sixth graders. Seeing what they were learning about with the prairie and reflecting on when I did the same thing in the first semester was fun. Everyone was super engaged in the activity and was able to find really interesting species and plants in the prairie. It reminded me a lot about when I researched the prairie with my class. I found it enjoyable to have conversations with the sixth graders, talk about what they had observed while in the prairie, and notice how their experiences were similar to mine. All my interactions with the students were really good, and I enjoyed listening and following along with them as they discovered the prairie and all the interesting species and plants that can be found!” Caroline Koman ’25 added, “I enjoyed being able to work with the 6th graders. It was really fun to go down to the middle school and be involved in their class because we normally don’t see them too often. All the 6th graders really wanted to listen to us and did a great job asking questions in the classroom and in the prairie.”
The collaboration was an engaging fit for everyone on the project. Mae Scott ’25 shared, “I really liked collaborating with the sixth graders since we had worked on the same project in the fall. It was interesting to see how they were approaching things versus how I approached things and be able to share experiences with them instead of just lecturing and giving advice. The most challenging thing was trying to explain the prairie on a rainy day and how to do the assignments while we were inside. The biggest thing that surprised me was how talkative the sixth graders were. I was expecting them not to ask many questions, but they seemed very interested in sharing ideas and making jokes, which made the entire situation less awkward and way more fun.”
Many thanks to MICDS juniors for joining this Middle School science adventure and bringing your expertise to the prairie project!