Pope & Stevens Water Fest and Conservation Day Pope and Stevens SWCD have joined together to provide 2 excellent learning opportunities for their 5th and 6th grade students. The 2008 Water Fest, for 6th graders, was held September 12 at Barsness Park in Glenwood. Conservation Day, for 5th graders, was held September 25, 2008 at the Scandia Woods Environmental Learning Lab (SWELL) in Stevens County.
6th graders from Pope & Stevens counties learned about various topics related to water at the 2008 Water Fest. Students are shown here waiting in line to play Water Hopscotch, which teaches them about choices we make that pollute or protect our waterways.		Our second annual Conservation Day at SWELL was a success, treating almost 300 students from Pope and Stevens counties to a day of learning about our environment in an outdoor setting.

Service Learning Stevens SWCD cooperates with all ages of students at the Morris Area schools on service learning projects related to our environment. In 2008, we worked with Service Learning Coordinator Cheryl Kuhn and various student groups on two major environmental projects. On Earth Day in April, students helped with a community collection of over 40 tons of electronic waste. We also worked with Service Learning and the DNR on a shoreline restoration within the Pomme de Terre City Park. Students worked to plant vegetation designed to restore the shoreline and reduce erosion.
Morris Area Service Learning students worked to collect over 40 tons of electronic waste.		Students plant native vegetation on a shoreline restoration in Pomme de Terre City Park.

2nd Grade Field Day The US Fish & Wildlife Service hosts a field day where SWCD staff help area students learn about the environment in our county.

Annual Poster Contest Students hear educational presentations on a different topic each year and then create posters or group murals based on the theme. Artwork is judged and prizes are awarded at the county and area levels.

Whenever possible, we like to bring students and teachers out of the classroom for hands-on learning. One of the programs we help with is the US Fish & Wildlife Service's 2nd Grade Field Day, held each May. We also visit area classrooms to talk to students about conservation. Each year, we develop and present sessions based on the current theme of the annual SWCD Poster Contest. Then students are asked to develop individual posters or group murals and submit them to the contest. Awards are given at school and county levels and winners advance to the area competition.

Area II Envirothon The Envirothon challenges the students’ environmental knowledge and problem solving skills. It began nationwide in 1979 and in Minnesota in 1993. The Area II event is put on by staff members from 9 of the Soil and Water Conservation Districts in Minnesota's west-central area. The Envirothon consists of five 25-minute outdoor learning stations, each based on a different topic that’s key to the environment. Area natural resource professionals give a presentation at each station and then teams take a test to assess their knowledge of the topic. The five different 2005 stations were Forestry, Wildlife, Aquatics, Soils, and the current event topic "Recreational Impact on Natural Resources." Each team is also required to give an oral presentation on the current event topic. Area II also hosts a Jr Envirothon, for students in 6-8th grades. In the first year, over 20 teams participated in a competition that was modeled after the senior Envirothon and designed to help younger students prepare for that.
The Mission Enviro team from Morris Area (l to r: Coach Vicky Dosdall, Rory Anderson, Sarah Kuhn, Mitch Kill, Natalie Johnston, Taylor Hufford and coach Matt Balken) placed 3rd overall and 3rd in the oral presentation category at the 2009 Area II Envirothon in Fergus Falls in May.		Students learn about the environment in an outdoor setting during this day-long competition. Winners at the area level can move on to state and national competitions as well.

The Stevens SWCD realizes the importance of environmental education and is proud to coordinate the Area II Envirothon competition and sponsor area teams' participation at the state level. Students and advisors alike enjoy this opportunity to learn about the natural environment through the hands-on activities in an outdoor setting. It is becoming increasingly harder for schools to find time and get funding to attend events like this. Even so, we are seeing tougher competition from the teams that are able to make it and we appreciate the extra effort involved.