Field Trips Are Back

The Nature Center at Butler Corner is in its third year of the Homeschool Outdoor Education Program sponsored by The Alpine International Preparatory Academy (AIPA). 

This year we have twenty students enrolled from Kindergarten through 7^th grade. We began our year studying the native grasses of our area. We collected many different grass seeds, making sure to avoid any noxious weeds. Our plan is to plant these seeds around our new Old Fashioned School House after construction left nothing but dirt. Of course, we’ll wait till the first snowfall to spread the seeds.

We next studied about the native wild bees and ants, learned about their habitats, and spent time looking for possible places to find each species. We learned there were more than 16 different bees common to Southwest Colorado.  We also learned about worms and what they, bees, and ants do to help our environment.

Our next focus was on the large mammals that live in and around the Nature Center – bears, mountain lions, bobcats, lynx, foxes, coyotes, wolves, deer, and elk. The children have learned facts about each animal family, drew life-like pictures of them and wrote poems about each animal.

We will be learning about the middles-sized mammals and the small mammals in the weeks ahead.