Coming Soon: Oysterville Science Academy!

Oysterville School, 1940s

Oysterville School, 1940s

Diane Buttrell and I have been talking about her plans for the Oysterville Science Academy this summer and I am feeling totally out of the educational loop. Maybe “educational” is the wrong word. It’s the kid loop I’m no longer part of.

Twenty years ago, I would have known most of the fourth graders in the Ocean Beach School District and I could have said to some of them, “Have you heard about what’s happening in Oysterville this summer? Are you planning to go? Will I see you in the schoolyard or down by the bay? I hope so!”

Ascan0021s it is, I can only hope that kids and parents get the word and sign up for the exciting program that Diane and her colleagues are planning. Beginning July 27th and continuing for three four-day weeks (Mondays thru Thursdays) fourth graders will become totally immersed in science. Through demonstrations, experiments, and hands-on activities and they will have an opportunity to learn from an amazing number of experts. Yes! Experts in matters such as oceanography, logistics, biology, and geothermal activity!

They won’t be learning in quite the usual way, either.  They will be using a curriculum developed by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.  Lessons are based on the time-honored processes used by actual scientists world-wide — observing, inferring, predicting, using numbers, measuring, communicating using time/space relationships, and classifying.

Imagine! Lab Coats!

There will be some writing, some research, and some time for art.  And, there will be lab coats! If I were a kid, that would be the final caveat! The experiments, the research, the field trips to look at ‘stuff’ in its natural habitat – all well and good. But there’d be nothing to make me feel more like being a real scientist than wearing a lab coat. What a great touch!

From the vantage point of an Oysterville resident, I can’t wait to hear children’s voices on the school grounds again. It’s been 57 years since school has been held on a regular basis at the little one-room schoolhouse. The occasional Easter egg hunt or visit by a group of school kids is great, but three weeks in a row of daily use by school children is a Big Deal. It almost makes me want to be a fourth grader again. Or maybe a teacher again. Almost.

6 Responses to “Coming Soon: Oysterville Science Academy!”

  1. Stephanie Frieze says:

    Oysterville is cutting edge! Actually, outdoor school is the new thing and Oysterville might be able to wangle a gig year ’round, but a summer for 4th graders is an excellent beginning. Get them out from in front of the computer and appreciate Mother Nature!

  2. Pam says:

    Lab coat indeed! You have just given me a great idea for a much needed wardrobe update.
    You have mentioned Diane Buttrell often. I would like to know more about her.

  3. Diane Buttrell says:

    OMG, Sydney, How good does it get!?

  4. kristen says:

    How do you register kids.

  5. sydney says:

    Call or email Diane Buttrell at (edianebuttrell@gmail.com), or at 360-214-1267

  6. sydney says:

    Diane is very approachable. Why don’t you write her a note to (edianebuttrell@gmail.com) and get acquainted…

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