Good Morning Watershed Explorers,
My name is Mrs. Morissette and I am the Narragansett Bay Commission's (NBC) Environmental Education Coordinator. My job entails delivering a special program called the Watershed Explorers to students. I will be sending this post to your teachers and hopefully, they will be forwarding it to you, because the exciting news is, YOU'RE A WATERSHED EXPLORER.
Although the program will look very different this year, as I won't be able to visit you in school, I will hopefully be seeing you on some Zoom or Google Meets sessions, and also be taking you on a virtual field trip of the Field's Point Wastewater Treatment Facility (WWTF). Please know that all of your educators are working hard to ensure that you have the best school year that you can, and I will be no different. I am going to do my best to provide you with the best Watershed Explorer experience. As the school year progresses, if you would like to contact me, please email me at cmorissette@narrabay.com with any questions, comments, or concerns. You can also ask your teachers to email me if you have anything that you would like to ask or share.
Please read through some of the old blog posts on the www.nbcwatershedexplorers.com website, and use this website as a resource as we move forward through the year. I will write blogs a few times a week, I will be posting some video lessons and resources, and I will also be providing some fun environmental education activities that you can do either at home or in school with your teachers. I hope that you will find this website both fun and educational.
Usually, our first lesson together involves learning about NBC and the wastewater treatment facilities as well as a bit about your watershed. Watersheds are areas of land that catch precipitation such as rain, snow, sleet, or hail and drain this water to a common place like a river or a bay. As an NBC Watershed Explorer, you will be monitoring the water quality in your watershed, and learning about how our wastewater, potable (useable) water, freshwater, and saltwater are all interconnected. There was a great comic in the October Ranger Rick magazine that showcased exactly why we monitor our watersheds. Check it out below!
Sometime soon, you will be getting a small bag of testing equipment so that you can do some water quality monitoring of your own. You will also be receiving a Watershed Explorer notebook where you can record your data. Before you use your new equipment I will be meeting with your classes through Zoom or Google Meets to showcase exactly how to use the materials that you have received.
I am very excited to meet all of you. Aside from learning about wastewater and watersheds, one of the main goals of the Watershed Explorer program is to get students outside and exploring. I hope that as we travel through the year, you will share some of your outdoor exploration stories with me and the other Watershed Explorers so that we can all inspire one another.
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Mead
Let's work together Watershed Explorers to learn, educate, and grow together.
Happy Exploring,
Mrs. Morissette