Noticing, Nurturing, Knowing: How 1st & 2nd Grade Are Growing Through EE Lessons

The banks of the Cape Fear River, dunes of Carolina Beach State Park, and trails of Longleaf Center serve as extended classrooms for our 1st and 2nd graders, where place-based projects spark curiosity, deepen understanding, and cultivate care for the natural world.

If you take a walk with a 1st Grade Fiddler Crab or 2nd Grade Seahorse here on campus, don’t be surprised if they pause to tell you about the fire-resistant bark of a Longleaf Pine, explain how corn and squash help each other grow, or gently warn you not to step on a bee in the pollinator garden. For these Lower School students, environmental learning is part of daily life—woven into reading, writing, math, science, and the everyday rhythm of being outdoors.

Throughout the year, students explore Wilmington’s local ecosystems through hands-on projects, cross-curricular studies, and quiet moments of observation. Their unit on the Cape Fear River begins with the song “The River is Flowing,”before moving into mapping exercises, nonfiction reading, and the creation of true-to-size 3D fish models. The project blends measurement, fine motor work, illustration, and research—all grounded in place.

In the garden, students study companion planting and the traditional teachings of the Three Sisters Garden, designing and planting beds using math concepts like spacing and symmetry. As they care for corn, beans, squash, and sunflowers, they learn about ecological interdependence and symbiosis—how each plant supports the others, above and below the soil.

Animal studies bring students onto the Longleaf trails in search of nests and signs of woodland activity. Back in the classroom, they work in groups to learn more about the eastern gray squirrel, chipmunk, or woodchuck. Each group creates clay paw prints and illustrates field guide entries to share their findings.

The Seahorses also spend time in the Longleaf Pine forests at Halyburton Park as part of a four-week artistic study focused on the tree’s life cycle and ecological role. They observe, sketch, and sculpt the stages of growth, paying close attention to details like bark texture and cone development. Along the way, they explore how the Longleaf Pine forest is connected to Indigenous histories and land stewardship.

In the spring, both classes welcome Jessy O'Keefe from Seaside Honeybees, who leads a workshop on honeybee care and the role of pollinators. Jessy, a local beekeeper, installs and maintains colonies across the Wilmington area. The visit offers students a closer look at how food systems and ecosystems connect—and how even young learners can help protect them.

These studies are supported by quieter moments on campus: a morning mindfulness walk to notice sound and texture in the forest, the first ripe strawberry harvested from the playground garden, or the discovery of an amber snail near Quaker Mountain during recess.

2025 also marked the 18th Annual 1st & 2nd Grade Campout at Carolina Beach State Park, where students hiked trails, observed wildlife, and spent the night in tents along the shore. It’s a milestone moment that deepens their sense of connection to place—and for many, it was their first night spent under the stars.

Whether writing advocacy letters to protect Sledge Forest, planting native species around the chimney swift tower, or studying carnivorous plants during their end-of-year festival, students returned often to a central question: How do we care for the world around us?

Here, environmental education isn’t a standalone unit. It’s part of a larger practice of paying attention, asking deep questions, and building lasting relationships with the land.