Prune Hill Elementary School students brainstorm definitions of “reuse” during the festival, which brought 1,000 kids to the park last Thursday and Friday. Photo: Danielle Frost

Every year, Mariah Acton meets fourth-graders who have never been on a hike or seen a blue heron.

And every year, the Columbia River Watershed Festival seeks to change that, and give students a new perspective.

Acton, events and volunteer coordinator for the non-profit, helps organize the festival, which is held in a Clark County park every year. This year, it was held in Capt. William Clark Park in Washougal. It also rotates with visits to Klineline Pond, Vancouver Lake and Lewisville State Park.

The goal is to teach as many fourth-graders as possible about environmental stewardship and conservation, and having fun while learning about it.

On Thursday and Friday, approximately 1,000 kids, including those from Camas and Washougal, participated in the event. They made their way through 16 rotating stations, which ranged from environmental storytelling to conservation to searching for evidence of animal activity along the beach.

“They don’t get these kinds of activities anywhere else in school these days,” Acton said. “There have been so many cuts to field trips and outdoor school.

Read the full story at The Post Record.