Eco-Education by the Bay

This year, Golden Gate Bird Alliance is awarding its Paul Covel Conservation Education award to Herb and Randi Long, two volunteers who have been pillars of our award-winning Eco-Education program since 2009. Eco-Ed works with 700 children from low-income elementary schools in Oakland, San Francisco and Richmond each year. With the 2015 Covel Award going to Herb and Randi, it seemed like a good time to share a “day in the life” of an Eco-Ed field trip — via a firsthand account and photos by our graphic designer.

By Eva Guralnick

I’ve designed Golden Gate Bird Alliance’s Gull newsletter and other materials since 2002, but until this spring I’d never checked out Eco-Ed for myself. I joined GGBA and Mr. Bonner’s fourth-grade class from Bayview Elementary School in Richmond on a Friday at Point Pinole and had a blast with the kids.

GGBA Eco-Education Director Anthony DeCicco started by gathering them all in a circle for some exercises to get some of their wiggles out and get them thinking about the day. Then he split them into one group for planting sticky monkey flower down by the shore with high school volunteer Henry, and two smaller groups for hiking. Anthony led one group and a volunteer led the other. The groups traded off later so everyone could get an equal turn at hiking and planting.

The hiking groups spent some time learning how to effectively use binoculars and getting them adjusted for their eyes before we set out. Anthony led his group through some exercises to help them focus on different distances that I’ll have to use on my own young son. It took them about 10 minutes but they all got the hang of it.

Anthony’s group had success right away when a large hawk flew overhead and circled several times, giving them lots of opportunities to pick it up in their binoculars for a close look. The kids went nuts. This was the real deal! They scrambled to look through their guides. Anthony led them through the markings of the bird — “Did it have a black tail? Did it have a white breast?” — and they identified it as a Red-tailed Hawk. It came back for a few more circles.

We headed into the open area and identified a female Western Bluebird, and then a few minutes later a male on a nearby bush. One of the students found a black snail that was new to me. She was an enthusiastic fan of this poor snail and didn’t want to put it down even as when it foamed up bubbles in an attempt to ward her off.

Our group pushed on to a higher ridge, where we identified several more birds and saw raccoon tracks embedded in dried mud. The kids found a stash of bones and debated what animal they could have come from.

I walked alongside one girl who noticed the funnel web of a spider in the deeper grass. The group pulled ahead a little while I tried to remember everything relevant I knew about spiders. She and I rushed to catch up, and had a chance to taste sweet fennel. We were still talking about the taste as we came over the crest and saw the Bay. “Oh, this is wonderful!” she said. “Do you mean the fennel or the whole day?” I asked. “The whole day,” she told me.

We joined the other hiking group down by the water and spent a few minutes looking through the scope. The kids were fascinated by the water’s edge and I thought we’d have to bodily carry a few off them off the sands but eventually everyone got back on the trail up to the picnic benches. The kids were so enthusiastic the whole way—I never heard a complaint about walking far or being hot or thirsty. They were so engaged and so happy to be outside.

Then the adults trooped back up to our starting point while the kids raced ahead.

While the kids had lunch, I sat around reviewing my photos and really regretting not bringing a sandwich. One of my new young friends grabbed my camera and took my photo. I was fine with that until she tried to pass my camera around to all her friends. That was fine for the binoculars but not for my camera.

Afterwards the groups switched off and I followed the students who were going to plant sticky monkey flower. It was a more dangerous assignment for me than I’d anticipated—the kids swung their tools around with more enthusiasm than accuracy when digging the holes for the plants.

Anthony had primed the kids with the idea that they could return to Point Pinole with their families and see their restoration work. The whole process of planting seemed new to them but they tackled it with the same gusto as they had done with birding.

The kids hiked their water down from the picnic area and that seemed fun too. I hope they retain this kind of enthusiasm through their teen years.

I drove away with a deepened respect for Eco-Ed—and for Anthony, who has great kid-wrangling skills and a huge amount of patience and understanding. I’ve been working on Eco-Ed materials for Golden Gate Bird Alliance for years now but it was a completely different experience to be there with the kids and see how exciting these programs are for them. This wasn’t just another day for them. It was transformative. For that day, they were naturalists, scientists, birders and conservationists. They took their jobs seriously, even while they had as much fun as they could. I felt great being part of it.

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Would you like to get involved as an Eco-Education volunteer, either in San Francisco or the East Bay? We’ll hold trainings for the coming school year in September. To be notified about the trainings or just to learn more about volunteering, contact Anthony at adecicco@goldengatebirdalliance.org.