Elementary

This week in Our Big Backyard… We started this week off making models of a hilly watershed – similar to our Edwards Plateau! We learned that the creeks running through Austin carry rainwater to the Colorado river along with any other chemicals or trash that the rain washes into the creek. The water carves a creek-bed and alongside that is the bank. The area of land running next to a creek or river is called a “riparian zone.” A riparian zone is very important to the health of our water because without grasses, forbs, shrubs, and trees, our rivers and […]

Indoor recess shenanigans This Week in Our Big Backyard… We discovered how trees are farms & communities. Trees build relationships with a variety of plants and animals. We learned that trees host other plants such as lichen and mosses. And that a whole host of creatures create and depend on the complex and diverse ecosystems in and around trees. Here in central Texas, mammals such as squirrels, opossums, foxes, deer, need the food and shelter trees provide. Tree frogs can live their entire lives in a tree using water that is caught in the cradle of branches. Reptiles such as