On Wednesday, January 11, 2017, students from Mr. Crimmel’s Ecology Club visited Washington Elementary School.

The purpose of the visit was to introduce the kids to the concept of ecology and the importance of maintaining a healthy environment. After arriving and introducing themselves, club members instructed the kids to draw a total of 10 plants and animals that would be found in New Jersey, draw lines between them, and indicate which might be eaten as food.

This exercise helped students understand what a food web is. Next, the kids were given playing cards with pictures of different organisms, such as animals, plants, and insects, and one person was assigned the role of the sun. After everybody received a card, they were instructed to stand in a circle and pass along a piece of yarn that started from the student designated as the “sun”; each student would then be connected to the other people in their organism group.

After the “sun” dropped the string, the students or “organisms” that felt their grip on the string loosen were instructed to drop the string, too. By doing this, students learned how removing one organism from an ecosystem could affect the entire ecosystems.

Overall, the lesson was successful.

Senior Jon Di Filippo said, “The kids already knew some of the basics about ecology, but the lesson we taught them expanded more on the topic, so, in the end, they learned more.” Teaching young students the importance of ecology is essential to a healthy community.