Skinner students learn about pine beetle problem in Keystone

Skinner Middle School 6th graders embarked on a three-day experience of epic proportions in December. Seventy students lugged enormous bags on to our busses to begin a learning adventure at Keystone Science School.

The focus of this trip was to investigate the Mountain Pine Beetle epidemic that is devastating the higher elevations of not only Colorado, but most alpine regions of North America.

As scientists, the students prepared themselves with background information on the insect and the challenges it is presenting to the resident stakeholders. While at Keystone, we learned even more about all of the stakeholders and the beetle’s impacts and wrapped up our visit with a town hall meeting during which students role played as stakeholders to discuss possible solutions that would satisfy all involved parties.

An annual field trip, the scope of the Keystone Science School experience was not only limited to science but also allowed students to gain new responsibilities, meet new friends and experience things that will create a lifetime of memories.

- Christopher Martin, Skinner 6^th grade Science teacher