Winter 2009 - Lancaster Mennonite School

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CAMPUS STREAM ENHANCES MIDDLE SCHOOL LIFE SCIENCEStewardship taught throughOutdoor classroomIn some senses wateris more importantthen energy. We’retalking about basichuman need here—clean drinking water.- Wayne Lehman,life science teacherBottom photo: Life science classfastens Leaf Pack to a rock so itremains secure during the fourweektesting period when the packwill attract organisms living in thestream. Counterclockwise, beginningat top: Samuel Ortega, EmilyBreneman, Lesly Fernandez,teacher Wayne Lehman andDavid Forte.Photo at bottom right: Classmeasures the clarity of the stream,another indicator of streamhealth. Left to right: Carlos Colon,Lesly Fernandez, Wayne Lehmanand Emily Breneman.Wayne Lehman, middle school scienceteacher at the Lancaster Campus, wasthrilled when he received a grant to attend asummer institute on teaching middle schoolersabout stream health. Clean water is one of ourmost valuable commodities worldwide. Withoutit we perish.Stroud Water Research Center, who conductedthe institute, chose our Lancaster Campus as thesite for the training since Mill Creek runs rightthrough the campus. Four days of the institutewere held on campus, and the fifth was held at theresearch center’s base at Avondale, Pennsylvania.The course was funded through a grant from theWilliam Penn Foundation and a contract with theNew York State Department of EnvironmentalConservation.During the fall semester that followed the institute,Lehman took what he learned to his seventhgrade life science class, using Mill Creek as theperfect hands-on classroom. Because streamsaffect the health of other waterways, stream studyis a good place to begin when looking at the worldwater scene.“What happens upstream has a huge impact onwhat happens downstream,” Lehman said. “Wewant them to learn how to take care of waterwherever they live.” Mill Creek, he explained,eventually runs into the Chesapeake Bay.The Leaf Pack Experiment that Lehman introducedto his students involves creating leaf packs(dry leaves in mesh bags), placing them in thestream for three to four weeks, then examiningthem to discover the number and types of aquaticorganisms that have set up housekeeping amongMiddle school life science teacher Wayne Lehman helpsstudents prepare Leaf Pack for stream study. Studentsare, left to right: Lesly Fernandez, David Forte andSamuel Ortega.the leaves. These findings serve as indicators ofthe stream’s health. The data is then shared onlinethrough The Leaf Pack Network (a network ofteachers and students investigating their localstream ecosystem), shedding light on the importantconnection between streamside forests and theecology of rivers and streams.During the stream unit, the students also conductmeasurements to provide a physical description ofthe stream—how deep and wide it is, rate of flow,condition of banks, and the types of trees growingon the banks. This year Lehman has 56 seventhgraders who are participating in the Leaf project.The clean water issue is “just huge,” saysLehman who is concerned with many others aboutthe availability of water in 10–15 years.“In some senses water is more important thanenergy,” he said. “We’re talking about basichuman need here—clean drinking water.”Lehman also uses the campus’s outdoor classroomfor other middle school science lessons, suchas a bird study and his yearlong “Adopt a Spot”activity where students choose an outdoor spot oncampus and then returnfor a half hour once amonth to study the ecologicalchanges.“We are so blessed tohave a pond, stream andwoodland,” Lehman said.“These natural settingsgive kids the types oflearning experiences theyremember long after theclassroom lectures areforgotten.” ■4 BRIDGES • WINTER 2009
The art above shows the proposed track and field facility for theLancaster Campus. The artist rendering at right shows the proposedfront entrance planned for the Kraybill Campus.Investments with good returnsOver the years alumni and friends have been faithful inhelping to provide facilities that allow the school to connectwith the gifts and abilities within each student, helpingto shape the leaders, doctors, salespersons, pastors and manyothers who are our friends and neighbors. For this we aremost grateful. For the school’s mission to continue, we needongoing participation in two new projects.Kraybill Campus improvementsExpanding the PreK/kindergarten program at Kraybill is a prioritythat is shared at the state and national levels. It has beenfound that strong early childhood programs lead to a higherpercentage of students graduating from high school andadvancing to higher education. In addition, we believe thatat this formative age the school’s message of love, care andvalue for each student will find receptive hearts. There is awaiting list at Kraybill of families who want to enroll in PreK.The changes at Kraybill will improve campus security,provide visitor-friendly entrances and lobbies with handicapaccessibility, enhance aesthetics, and create better traffic flowthat will eliminate congestion and a more student friendlyenvironment. Preliminary projections estimate the cost tobe $1.5 million, including endowment that will maintain thefacility. The school’s goal is to break ground as soon as possibleto complete the following:• renovate the school's main entrance• enlarge the lobby• add a classroom for PreK and kindergarten• relocate the offices for greater student security• connect the rear of the elementary building to thegymnasium—reducing student traffic in the mainlobby area and decreasing walking time for studentsgoing to the gym• increase access to the middle school student lockerarea and enlarge middle school hallway space—alleviating student congestion between classesLancaster Campus track and field facilityTrack and field at Lancaster Mennonite High School becamepart of the Lancaster-Lebanon League in the spring of 2005.Because we did not have a track and field facility, our graciousneighbors, Lampeter-Strasburg High School sharedtheir facilities for practices and home meets. Four years later,LMS athletes are still without a track and field facility.According to Athletic Director Mike Yoder, the $1.27 millionfacility goes far beyond interscholastic sports. Yes, itwould add significant credibility to our track program, butthat’s only half the story.“It’s not just an athletic facility,” Yoder said, “It will beused just as much by our student body in gym classes.”Here are some of the things teachers will be able to do:• Accurately measure distances when doing fitnesstraining• Teach various types of runs and interval trainingin weight training class• Train for basketball pre-season• Plan for an all-school track and field day forelementary and middle school studentsEvents like Student Council fundraisers and the IronBridge Run/Walk, along with the gifts of 1,000 donors, havealready raised $500,000 toward the project. ■How can I help?Eighty percent of the cost is needed before ground breakingcan occur. Join us in moving these projects forward bysending your gift today to Lancaster Mennonite School,2176 Lincoln Highway East, Lancaster, PA 17602, or bymaking a gift online at www.lancastermennonite.org.Or, you may contact Director of Advancement HeidiStoltzfus at (717) 299-0436, ext. 308, or stoltzfushe@lancastermennonite.orgto discuss giving opportunities.BRIDGES • WINTER 2009 5
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Winter 2009 - Lancaster Mennonite School

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