This week, second graders from Fairfield and Young Schools traded their desks for dirt trails, immersing themselves in an outdoor learning adventure led by Saco Middle School (SMS) students. The interactive “Trail Talks” event gave nearly 100 second graders the chance to learn about local ecosystems through exploration, observation, and hands-on activities in the woods surrounding Saco Middle School.
From exploring forested trails to searching for salamanders and identifying native plant life, the second graders experienced science in a way that was active, engaging, and memorable. Their guides for the day were seventh and eighth-grade students from SMS’s Sebago Team, who led small-group activities across three student-built trails that have become a vibrant outdoor classroom over the past few years.
“This was such a fun day for our second graders,” said Fairfield School teacher Karen MacKenzie. “They were curious, excited, and fully immersed in nature-based learning. It’s one thing to read about ecosystems—it’s another to crouch down beside a vernal pool and actually see what’s living there.”
The middle schoolers drew on their recent studies to create age-appropriate lessons and activities, including scavenger hunts, journaling, and observation games. Their enthusiasm and preparation helped make the trails feel like a living laboratory, sparking curiosity in their younger peers.
“The second graders were so excited to be out there, especially when they found frogs, insects, or unusual leaves,” said Olivia Garland, who helped lead a session. “It was cool to show them that learning can happen anywhere—even in the woods.”
The trails, first created by SMS students during the 2020–2021 school year, have become a space where students across grade levels can engage in project-based learning and environmental stewardship. The area includes four vernal pools, where students observe and collect data on amphibians and aquatic insects as part of climate monitoring efforts in partnership with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute.
For the second graders, “Trail Talks” was more than a field trip—it was a chance to see science come alive, guided by students just a few years older who modeled curiosity, collaboration, and a connection to the natural world.
PHOTO CAPTION ABOVE: Saco Middle School eighth-graders Annabella Duquette and Mackenzie Dandreo guide a group of second-graders from Fairfield School during a “Trail Talks” ecology activity, where students explored vernal pools, soil samples, and forest life along SMS’s student-built nature trails.