In fact, bullfrog tadpoles and Pacific tree frog tadpoles and
water worms and damselfly larvae and salamander larvae are all
familiar wigglies to this group of 4th-, 5th- and 6th-graders.
And all those water dwellers tell the young scientists important
information about water quality. The students made their third
trip of the school year to Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve this
week as a part of the year long Future Field Guides program.
W.L. Henry principal Travis Reiman and several teachers won a
$6,000 grant from the Hillsboro Schools Foundation to partner
with Jackson Bottom for the hands-on science program. During the
school year, all 4th- through 6th-grade classes visited the
wetlands three times — fall, winter and spring — to observe
seasonal changes and learn about the biodiversity around them.
By now, these kids are experts. Readily tossing around words
like turbidity, sediment, dissolved oxygen and hypothesis, the
children will share what they’ve learned at Jackson Bottom with
the younger students a