Earth Week: Real-World Environmental Science in Action
Earth Week 2026
Earth Week at Powhatan was a vibrant celebration of curiosity, stewardship, and hands-on learning. Across campus, students immersed themselves in meaningful activities that deepened their connection to the natural world. From our youngest learners to our middle schoolers, the week reflected our shared commitment to environmental responsibility and the belief that learning is most powerful when it extends beyond the classroom.
The campus was buzzing with activity. Pre-K and first grade students created and planted in their own planters, while second graders expanded their work into raised garden beds. Kindergarten students engaged in a cross-curricular experience by crafting pinch pots in art before packing them full of dirt and planting seeds. They continued by planting sunflower seeds in their classroom raised beds, thoughtfully prepared earlier in the week by our Upper School Outdoor Education team. We were also fortunate to welcome a guest speaker who highlighted the critical role wetlands play in sustaining healthy ecosystems. And while all of these experiences made waves, one project truly kept the momentum flowing — our student-built stream restoration effort, where hands-on collaboration met real-world environmental impact.
Authentic Learning: Stream Restoration Project
A stream restoration activity isn’t just a fun Earth Week project – it’s modeled after nature. Inspired by how beavers shape healthy waterways, we’re creating what’s called a Beaver Dam Analog, also known as a BDA. These structures use natural materials like logs, sticks, and mud to gently slow the flow of water. As water backs up slightly, it creates small pools that support fish, strengthen plant life, and reconnect the stream to the surrounding landscape.
“Through projects like this, students are not just learning about ecosystems — they are developing systems thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration skills that prepare them for advanced science coursework and real-world challenges.” ~Mr. Schiavone, Lower School Science Teacher & NEAL Coordinator
This has been a true campus community effort across multiple grade levels. Throughout the week, third, fourth, and fifth grade students have each contributed to different stages of the process. Even seventh graders joined in by cutting vines. Fifth graders gathered additional materials—cutting vines near the “gnarly tree” and spent a morning harvesting grasses from the meadow. After Mr. Schiavone set the structural posts into the streambed, third and fourth graders entered the stream to construct the dam itself by layering vines and logs, then reinforcing the structure with grasses and packed mud.
The process takes teamwork — layering wood and brush across the stream, then packing it with mud to form a low, sturdy barrier. The goal isn’t to stop the water, but to guide it — letting it flow more slowly and evenly downstream. Over time, this helps reduce erosion, rebuild stream banks, and create a richer, more diverse ecosystem.
NEAL: Nature Enhanced Approach to Learning
At Powhatan School we use an approach called Nature Enhanced Approach to Learning (NEAL). NEAL is a lens through which we can teach any or all components of our curriculum. We use it to bring our students outside into the natural world and to bring the natural world indoors to our students.
Some people may have the impression that NEAL is an “add-on” to our science curriculum or an outdoor education unit in our physical education program. Although both are good assumptions, NEAL (Nature Enhanced Approach to Learning) is far more unique and important than a unit or special trip. It is one of the many ways a Powhatan education is set apart from curriculums at other schools. NEAL broadens access points into complex content, deepens context, improves engagement, and creates more ways for students to demonstrate mastery.
Teachers create lessons that utilize nature to supplement classroom materials in order to engage the students. Lessons are designed to incorporate nature, regardless of the subject. The cross-curricular opportunities are abundant. It might be a field trip that combines language arts and survival skills taken directly from the novel Hatchet. Or a science and history collaboration along the nature trail.
Guest speakers and scientists are hallmarks of the program. They work directly with the children in a real-world setting. For example, the ability to learn about the Wetlands in a hands-on activity with guest scientists makes for a truly meaningful experience.
The Crocker Conservancy:
The Crocker Conservancy is made up of the 47-acres located in the back of our campus. There are three main habitats on the Crocker Conservancy, including a wetland habitat, warm season grass and wild flower meadow and hardwood forests. Each unique learning space offers real-world opportunities for students to learn and discover. Activities like the stream restoration during Earth Week helps student develop both executive function and self-confidence all while working with others to achieve a common goal.
Earth Week on Instagram
Want to see more of these activities in action? Head over to our instagram page and check out our students on the Crocker Conservancy!
