Last week Notre Dame Academy’s IB Environmental Systems and Societies class and Earth science classes packed up their book bags and set out for a long day of excursions.

 Leaving before the school day even started, 65 students, accompanied by Mr. Daniel Winkler, set out for the great unknown. The IB ESS and Earth science classes traveled to places with geological importance in the local community, such as Ebben Quarry, Scrays Quarry, Fonferek’s Glen County Park and BayShore County Park.

While the students explored, they were able to “experience a quarry first-hand and learn about the everyday mining operations,” said Winkler.

Besides seeing a quarry,, students were also able to “study the local geology, mining operations and the histories of the parks,” said Winkler.

Studying the local geology included hiking and discovering unique natural features like waterfalls along the Niagara Escarpment, glacial remnants and a land bridge.

Along with visiting different geographical landmarks, students were given a chance to talk to “professionals in the natural resources field, including a naturalist from Barkhausen, a graduate student from UWGB and a mining and surveying professional from Northeast Asphalt,” said Winkler.

The field trip offered the students of the IB ESS and Earth Science classes an outside-the- classroom learning experience and taught the students why our community looks the way it does.

“We learned a lot about the history of our area and the effects that time has had on shaping our county parks and wildlife preserves,” said senior Olivia Nelson.

Unfortunately for the students this is the only field trip offered by the course this year but if you are interested in taking IB ESS or Earth science next year the field trip is an annual event. Thus, if understanding the geography of our local community is interesting to you, IB ESS or Earth science might be your class of choice for next year.