Rancher to teach kids about nature

From the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition:

The Pathways to Nature Program announces its second nature day event on April 2, 2011. The program will be hosted by ranchers Chet and Angela Vogt on the Three Creeks Ranch located in western Glenn County. Pathways to Nature is a school-sponsored event designed to give all fourth grade students attending Willows Murdock Elementary, William Finch Charter School and Elk Creek Elementary hands on experience with nature and natural resources.

The all-day event allows the students to connect what they are learning in the classroom with the natural environment. Every student will spend time learning about various aspects of the outdoors and the environment, from hydrology to plant identification. This year will also feature a new career opportunity station. The reaction from the students who have had the opportunity to attend last year’s event in 2010 was overwhelming, they left the ranch inspired.

“It is our hope as teachers involved in the program that the students will learn environmental and agricultural lessons that will last a lifetime on this day,” states Jill Egly, fourth grade teacher at Willows Unified School District. “This event is something that students work throughout the year in the classroom learning and this day, out on a ranch, they will experience it firsthand.”

Event host Chet Vogt states, “It is a pleasure to have more than 200 students visit our property. Each day, as a rancher, I have the opportunity to experience the outdoors, care for the environment and raise food that feeds my family and yours. It is my hope that other ranchers will join me in educating youth and will partner with other schools around the state to hosts similar events on their ranches.”

This is a community-driven event that includes a diverse array of partners including the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Glenn-Colusa CattleWomen, U.S. Forest Service, parents of students and other community organizations and individuals.