Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 3, 1993 TAG: 9306030126
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LEIGH ALLEN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
\ For schoolchildren who still believe food comes from the supermarket and wood from the lumberyard, some foresters in the Roanoke Valley want to set the record straight.
"We're going to think like detectives this morning," forester Steve Jarvis told 21 first-graders from Fairview Magnet Elementary School last week. Nature detectives, that is.
With years of experience leading forestry seminars and educational workshops, Jarvis is armed with enough information to qualify as the Sherlock Holmes of the forest. But these Roanoke first-graders weren't easily impressed.
Jarvis' first mystery: "How did this oak tree get here? . . . "
"An acorn!" fired back a 7-year-old.
"Very good!"
Having gained some confidence in his audience from that straightforward answer, Jarvis was ready to move on to the next subject. But a quiet voice from a girl at the back of the line stopped him in his tracks:
"Then why do acorns make oak trees?" the girl asked. "Why not acorn trees?"
"That," Jarvis managed to say, "is a good question."
Foresters and school teachers hope the Explore Park in Roanoke County can help bridge the gap between nature and the classroom.
In April, the Blue Ridge chapter of the Society of American Foresters finished building a series of nature trails among the hollows and ridges at Explore that allow even the most novice trailblazers to learn something about Virginia's hardwood forests.
Since then, society members such as Jarvis, a forester with the American Pulpwooders Association, have volunteered their time leading nature hikes to help students get a better understanding of the role forests play in their lives.
One recent morning, Jarvis spent about an hour talking with the children about how to tell the different species of trees, the different uses for forest products and which animals lived in the park's 1,300 acres.
The children also learned about timber management, how to tell the age of trees just by looking at them and what causes certain trees to die earlier than others.
Jarvis explained how growth rings on one tree showed when other trees around it were harvested and it was "released" from their shade. He explained another area of the forest where only the best trees were cut, leaving only the inferior ones standing.
"When they get back to school, this is all they're going to talk about for days," said Becky Whisnet, whose class Jarvis was leading. Whisnet said the nature hike was a new experience for many.
"Lots of these kids have never even been in the woods before," Whisnet said.
Teacher's aide Jan Collisi surveyed the children as they filed past her in search of another mystery. The Explore hike was particularly interesting to the students because Fairview is a magnet school for the study of living animals and plants.
The hike gave them an opportunity to experience what they are studying in the classroom. "Look at them," she said as one child darted off the trail in an exaggerated attempt to avoid a small spider. "They're definitely awake this morning."
Picking up the pace, Jarvis introduced the group to its next challenge: "Let's move on to the scene of a murder . . . . "
Kneeling under a low branch, Jarvis pointed to a few black feathers lying on the forest floor.
The victim: A crow, he said.
Jarvis' prime suspect: An owl.
The evidence: The remains of another meal which the owl had spit up to make room for the crow.
"Oooowuh," the children howled in unison, quickly stepping away from the owl vomit.
Another crime scene appeared at a fallen log beside the nature trail.
The charge: Playing amplified music for sexual attraction.
The suspect: A ruffed grouse.
"Did you know we have a bird in the forest that plays the drums?" Jarvis asked the group, immediately attracting their undivided attention.
Grouse use fallen logs as places to drum their wings to attract mates, Jarvis explained. "The Forest Service leaves logs like this in some areas so the grouse will have a place to drum."
Jarvis explained how different species of wildlife, such as deer and grouse, prefer the forest at various stages of growth.
"This is a great chance to educate," Jarvis said as he steered the group back to the beginning of the trail. "I hope we can do more of this in the future."
by CNB