Friday, January 31, 2014
Every day in this cold, cold weather, the excavators and the big dump trucks are working away. We have all watched with fascination as the new science pond takes shape!
The pond will be a great feature of our outdoor-based science program and a centerpiece for exploring water ecosystems, clean water advocacy, and STEM.
It is being dug at the site of what we believe was the former farm pond. When it is done, it will be about a half-acre in size, with gently graduated sides and a depth of 8 feet in the center. We’ll put some split-rail fencing with mesh at crucial spots around the perimeter and plan to add a deck and a pond shed for storing buckets and nets and all the other equipment needed for pond exploration.
The strategic idea for a science pond came about at forums and discussions with trustees, parents and teachers about how to maximize the natural science features at Parker. The streams, woods, meadows and wetlands are all wonderful elements of discovery and analysis for our students, so creating our very own pond seemed to be the natural next step. With the generous initial funding of a special donor and the guidance of the school’s Planet Parker Committee, coordinated by Jamie Crouse, we were able to get started this winter.
One of the biggest questions for the Planet Parker Committee was “Where do we put the fill?” Take a look at the east side of our parking lot and you will see the natural solution to our parking issues when we have big events: an expanded parking area! We will keep it grassy and it will be great for parking overflow.
The next phase of the project is watching the pond fill with water from the water table. I am sure there will be mud! But then the native plants will fill in on the banks and the meadow will seed itself again. Students have been charting the man-made changes to the site and now they will have the opportunity to see how the land restores itself and what wildlife and plants make their new home at the Parker pond!