Posted by Kristy Lundstrom, Head of Middle School on February 23, 2021

Every year, Mr. Robertson incorporates outdoor learning into his science class.  Students study the trees on campus, the layout of the land and more. In the fall, students walked the woods to identify Maple trees and mark them, so they would know which ones to tap in the winter when there are no leaves to look at. In the winter months of 5th grade, the students learn how to “tap sap” from a tree.  Then, the students learn about the process of sap turning into syrup. They actually walk out to the trees (in the snow) and do the field work.  Then, Mr. Robertson shares screenshots of the rest of this “real world lab.”  He separates the water with an evaporator; takes the liquid to the perfect temperature; showing and questioning by-products; and carefully cooks the mixture until just right.  He documents and shares the entire process with students asking careful questions all along the way:

1. Why is it important to put a lid on your sap buckets?  

2.  Why is measuring precise temperature so important?

Once complete, the students review the entire process.  Studying nature at different times of the year gives a fuller understanding of the cyclical changes.  Working with natural ingredients to create a household product makes the learning real and relevant. Thanks, Mr. R!

As a bonus, students in our middle school made maple sugar pops this week in our Farm-to-Fork virtual cooking class.  Using syrup and snow, they created a sweet treat with, you guessed it, syrup just like the liquid that was created in the 5th grade science class.

Our LifeReady curriculum calls us to provide teaching that is motivational and timely; learning must be deep, authentic, integrated, and collaborative. We believe that learning awakens excitement in students for the material they study so they understand concepts fully and fundamentally. Studying how sap becomes syrup and using that material to create something edible is just one example of what LifeReady learning looks like in our middle school.