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Field Trips
Blue Ocean Society Beach Cleanup
Middle and Upper School students combined forces to conduct a beach cleanup with the Blue Ocean Society at the Eliot Boat Basin. The Middle School group was led by the 8th grade Environmental Sustainability student leader, and the Upper School group consisted of students from the Global Environmental Sustainability class. Over the course of a couple hours, these 24 students collected 307 pieces of trash, weighing in at 49 pounds! Students worked in teams to track the type of trash and size of each item so that the Blue Ocean Society can add this information to their tracking database - a true example of citizen science!
Common Ground Country Fair
Ms. Shimer's Farm to Fork class and Global Environmental Sustainability class, 11th and 12th grade Science electives, took their annual field trip to the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine. Students volunteered in the compost tent, sorting compost and helping teach attendees about correct composting habits. They also spent time speaking with vendors and attending demonstrations - the sheep dogs were a highlight! Overall, students said that this field trip gave them the chance to interact with people who center a sustainable lifestyle in their daily choices.
York Land Trust
Middle and Upper School students combined forces to conduct a beach cleanup with the Blue Ocean Society at the Eliot Boat Basin. The Middle School group was led by the 8th grade Environmental Sustainability student leader, and the Upper School group consisted of students from the Global Environmental Sustainability class. Over the course of a couple hours, these 24 students collected 307 pieces of trash, weighing in at 49 pounds! Students worked in teams to track the type of trash and size of each item so that the Blue Ocean Society can add this information to their tracking database - a true example of citizen science!
Common Ground Country Fair
Ms. Shimer's Farm to Fork class and Global Environmental Sustainability class, 11th and 12th grade Science electives, took their annual field trip to the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine. Students volunteered in the compost tent, sorting compost and helping teach attendees about correct composting habits. They also spent time speaking with vendors and attending demonstrations - the sheep dogs were a highlight! Overall, students said that this field trip gave them the chance to interact with people who center a sustainable lifestyle in their daily choices.
York Land Trust
Ms. Duehmig's 5th grade science class spent the Fall learning about invasive plant species. They used the BA Forest as an outdoor learning space and then put this knowledge into action when they went to the York Land Trust. Students helped identify and remove Glossy Buckthorn, an invasive plant that is rapidly spreading at the York Land Trust. Students were able to remove multiple tarps - full of this plant!
Mr. Fox Composting
Ms. Guziak's 3rd grade students took a field trip to Mr. Fox Composting, owned by Berwick parents. Students were able to see where our food goes after we compost it in the Dining Hall. They learned about each step of the process that eventually breaks the food down into soil. Some of this soil eventually comes back to us to be used in the Berwick Campus Garden!
Common Ground Country Fair
Mr. Fox Composting
Ms. Guziak's 3rd grade students took a field trip to Mr. Fox Composting, owned by Berwick parents. Students were able to see where our food goes after we compost it in the Dining Hall. They learned about each step of the process that eventually breaks the food down into soil. Some of this soil eventually comes back to us to be used in the Berwick Campus Garden!
Common Ground Country Fair
Ms. Shimer's Farm to Fork class, an 11th and 12th grade Trimester elective, attended the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine. The Fair is run by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association and focuses on local food systems in New England. Students volunteered in the compost tent, spoke with vendors about their products, attended demos, and explored the Fair. This was an opportunity for students to see some of the topics they've been studying in class, such as extending the growing season and food preservation, in the real world!
Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Great Works Regional Land Trust
Ms. Willemsen's 6th grade Science Class took the opportunity to venture off campus into the local area to do some invasive species work, with the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid. This bug is devastating Eastern Hemlock populations from Georgia to Maine and tracking it's progress is a big part of understanding ways to contain the spread. In partnership with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Great Works Regional Land Trust, 6th grade students visited two different field sites to identify the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in our community. Students then report all data to a public database run by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute and can see other data collected by groups throughout northern New England. Finally, students coded their own game or project that helps educate others about the spread of the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid. Each science class went to two sites, and Ms. Ibsen's 8th grade Science Class along with Ms. Bessette's Pinnacle Biology students joined for a couple of excursions!
New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station
Ms. Shimer's Global Environmental Sustainability class, an 11th and 12th grade elective, took a field trip to the UNH Fairchild Dairy, which provided students with an opportunity to see a local food system in action. They learned about the closed-loop system that UNH runs, focusing on sustainability every step of the way, ranging from producing feed to using the waste as fertilizer around campus. Students also had the opportunity to meet with two professors who shared their research on small-scale versus large-scale farming and feeding cows seaweed to reduce methane production. It was clear that our students enjoyed the opportunity to get off campus, ask questions about the dairy industry, and of course, they loved petting the cows!
Berwick Academy
31 Academy Street
South Berwick, Maine 03908
Contact:
Admission | 207.384.6300
Main Office | 207.384.2164
South Berwick, Maine 03908
Contact:
Admission | 207.384.6300
Main Office | 207.384.2164
Berwick Academy, situated on an 80-acre campus just over one hour north of Boston, serves 550 students, Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12 and Post-Graduates. Berwick students are from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and several countries. Deeply committed to its mission of promoting virtue and useful knowledge, Berwick Academy empowers students to be creative and bold. Berwick strives to graduate alumni who shape their own learning, take risks, ask thoughtful questions, and come to understand and celebrate their authentic selves.
