Clearing the path

above: It is hard to take a photo of empty space, but there is a new clearing between the ring of concrete "toadstools" behind second grade and the Middle School parking lot (in front of the orange fence in this photo)

A patch of invasive species was cleared from the shores of the pond over Thanksgiving break, the next step in a multi-year process that has included revitalized wild spaces for Gordon and lots of hard science for Gordon students.

It was a step forward in an ongoing project aimed at preventing erosion and restoring native plants to the wild spaces around Gordon’s stream and pond. “The brush-clearing was an experiment, really,” said Green Dean Cush Gillen. “We hired a professional crew to do one day of work. We wanted to see how far they could get in a day, and the results were eye-opening.”

The goals are to keep Gordon’s waterways clean, and open up spaces that are now filled with impenetrable layers of invasive prickly vines, while keeping Gordon’s students involved in the science every step of the project.

 

 

 

above: Sixth graders have begun tracking temperature, pH, nitrate and phosphate levels, turbidity, dissolved oxygen and (soon) coliform bacteria, at six different points along Gordon's stream. The work parallels work eighth grade was doing twenty years ago.

On Wednesday, sixth graders began testing the water in the pond and the stream to establish a baseline with the ultimate goal of ensuring that the water that leaves Gordon’s campus is cleaner than it was when it arrived. “Gordon’s wetlands drain into the bay,” says Gillen, “and we can help preserve that shared resource.”

“The priority is always to keep the space wild while opening it up to more play and more learning,” said Buildings and Grounds Director Eddie Dalo. He and the rest of his team are working on next steps with Gordon’s science team, Gordon's science students, and parent volunteers who include landscape architect Emily Vogler.

 

 

 

above: Over the past three years, the ecosystem in Gordon's pond has undergone several rounds of improvements based on Lower School students' research, and the current third grade is keeping the pressure on. Their most recent proposals are now hanging in the Commons.

This is all part of a larger project in science, sustainability and outdoor education.

Since the pandemic put a new focus on Gordon’s green spaces, there’s been an explosion of collaboration between Gordon students, science faculty and the Buildings and Grounds Team. 

The new work by the stream builds on recent ambitious projects in Gordon’s wetlands. Over the past three years, the pond has undergone an extensive, research-based revitalization directed by original research conducted by Lower School students. At the other end of the stream, fifth and sixth grade established and mapped a no-mow zone behind the Middle School last spring where they replaced invasive species with native plants. 

This all happened in parallel with the establishment of the Green Dean position and the permanent gardens that have sprang to life across campus, including the large community garden and outdoor classroom on the corner of Hilltop and Maxfield. These gardens connect ecology and sustainability work with the role food plays in curriculum schoolwide.

The gardens and the wetlands offer science laboratories that complement the other outdoor learning spaces across Gordon’s twelve-acre campus—spaces that are now linked by a reimagined student-built nature trail that encircles the campus. These include spaces for free play, like the wild space of Elf Village, as well as more formal classroom spaces dotted across Gordon's green spaces.

The evolution of Gordon's outdoors will continue to create new opportunities for learning and playing, and Gordon's science teachers, Buildings and Grounds team, and Gordon's students will be watching closely to make sure the changes happen thoughtfully, responsibly and sustainably.