Middle School Summer Program
By Lily Gordon, Program Coordinator
On the first day of the program, many pairs of wide young eyes stare silently at me and Ketura as we talk through expectations, details of the program, and some of the topics we’ll be learning about. We give them many opportunities to talk and participate, but it’s like pulling teeth, trying to get this group of self conscious preteens to share anything. I privately worry that the whole summer will be this awkward.
Fast forward to the last field trip of the program: when we arrive to pick up the kids for the day, they are already laughing and high-fiving. During the whole 30-minute van ride they’re chatting away, joking around with other pre-teens - even those who had been total strangers at the beginning just six weeks ago. At this moment, I realize that we’re no longer a random group of strangers, but rather a small community.
This year, we piloted the summer version of our Middle School Environmental Leadership Program, a program that Brandon Tolentino-Serrano designed and successfully ran for the past two and a half school years. A cohort of nine 6th-8th graders met three times a week at the East Somerville Community School. I stepped up as Middle School instructor with the help of Ketura Leroy, FNL Senior Counselor, and with Brandon’s curriculum and support.
Every Monday and Wednesday we met in the East Somerville School courtyard, which boasts a beautiful garden with vegetables, native flowers, and fruit trees to explore. The students enjoyed the garden so much that we learned to leave five or ten minutes at the beginning of each session simply for them to walk around and observe, tasting a cherry tomato or commenting on a newly opened sunflower.
Each week had a different theme. One week, we talked about food systems, teaching participants to plant seeds and tend to them, taste testing produce from the farmer’s market and comparing it to commercial grocery store produce, and discussing soil health and decomposition. Another week we focused on survival skills, working together to pitch a tent, practicing how to lace up hiking boots, and learning how to use a compass through a compass treasure hunt.
The highlight of the program for many of the kids was the field trips. Every Friday we picked them up at the East Somerville school in a van to take them on a full-day field trip adventure to an awesome nature spot. Over the course of the summer we went to Walden Pond for hiking, Puffer Pond for fishing, the Museum of Science, and twice to Farrington Nature Linc.
My personal favorite field trip was fishing at Puffer Pond. Most of the kids had never been fishing before, and Elvin Atkins, an avid angler and Nature Linc volunteer, made it easy for us to learn! Fluffy white clouds and the bright blue sky reflected on the still water of the pond as we stood watching Elvin demonstrate how to bait a hook with a worm. My impression of fishing was that it takes a lot of waiting, but we didn’t have to wait long as all the kids cast out their lines- almost immediately a boy exclaimed, “I think I’ve got one!!” We watched in awe as he pulled a beautiful little sunfish out of the water, its wiggling body gleaming blue, yellow, and green. Elvin showed us how to tip the hook gently to release the little fish back into the water. Not long after, others caught more! By the end of the hour, every single one of us had caught at least one fish.
The last week of the program, we were reluctant to say goodbye. We wrapped up with a pizza celebration for youth and their families to celebrate and reflect on the program. Brandon, Ketura, and I were touched by how many parents and families showed up in the middle of a Monday, some even taking time off work just to make it to the event. We heard such heartfelt thank yous from the caregivers, saying things like, “my daughter and I wish this lasted longer!” and asking us how they can sign up immediately for the school year version of the program.
