Superior Middle Schoolers Test Science Class Knowledge Outdoors

SUPERIOR, Wis.– Earlier this week, 8th graders from Superior Middle School got to apply skills learned from science class down at the St Louis River.

The kids rotated through five different stations to learn more about the world around them.

Good and bad algae, invasive species, and the chemical PH balance of the water were just some of the topics covered.

The students are applying skills they’ve learned in the classroom and putting them to the ultimate test.

One education coordinator said the hands-on experiences help their curiosity, and desire for answers.

“I think it’s really neat to have students experiences outside of school, something like, validated during the school day, for example, like, if a student, like, fishes a lot in the estuary and in the river and, like knows different things about, like, good habitat for fish, or, like, good temperatures and stuff like that, then they can also learn about how people use that information to make decisions about taking care of the water or understanding what’s happening, besides just for fish,” said Luciana Ranelli, Education Coordinator Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve.

An 8th grade teacher at Superior Middle School said that his passions with science led to this idea.

And there’s better that comes out of this style of teaching.

“So, when you get them out into the field and actually doing things, everything lands a little bit differently, and it becomes more meaningful for them. They learn it a little bit differently. You know, doing is always better than just hearing. So that’s, that’s a lot of what our goal is today,” said Dan Widiker, 8th Grade Life Science Teacher at Superior Middle School.

Not only did the students learn from their middle school teacher, but the stations also featured educators from the Lake Superior Research Institute, from University Wisconsin Superior, but also the Lake Superior Reserve, as well as several community members.