Fourth Graders on the Prairie

4th Graders on the Prairie is an award-winning collaboration between Barrington District 220 and Citizens for Conservation. All eight elementary schools in the district participate, and many volunteers are needed. We hope you will consider volunteering in the prairie sometime in September! This is a wonderful opportunity to share the value of our work with future land stewards. So much excitement has been generated, as families and students discovered the treasures of the prairie and native plant seeds, while practicing STEAM scientific tools as citizen scientists. Thank you to all the many volunteers who help make this program happen. Hundreds of young minds are inspired each year!

Contact us to volunteer at our next fourth grade prairie experience.  

Even amid a pandemic in the fall of 2021, this program continued. With the help of a Barrington High School TV studio student, we created two videos to be used by teachers in virtual learning situations. The videos share the experience and fun facts learned on prairie hikes. 

Since 2009, we have partnered with Barrington School District 220 to teach children how to become citizen scientists. The prairie is used for active learning experiences, which directly support the district’s science curriculum standards. 

In this award-winning collaboration, more than 700 students in all eight District 220 elementary schools make prairie field visits annually, where they observe, measure and record life on the prairie. CFC volunteers conduct in-class orientation sessions. Then, students visit a local prairie where volunteers help them with their field work. The students’ work also helps us collect data on plant growth from year to year, as well as other information about these preserves. We work closely with the school district to match the experience with the current standards and curriculum.