A Missoula Middle School Visits

In April, 135 students and staff came to the ranch from C.S. Porter Middle School. Teachers divided the groups into homeroom classes and visited once per week over the course of three weeks.

Students received instruction in geology and the history of the Bitterroot Valley. They discovered gneiss, granite, and quartzite stones and then skipped those stones into the river. The field trips included hikes with a nature themed scavenger hunts and culminated in writing assignments.

Students spread out to have time alone with their thoughts and the natural world as they composed poems. They wrote and shared poems inspired by their surroundings. But most importantly, they left the classroom for a day spent learning outside.