TJ students learn about the ecological effects during an AP field trip. photo by Brett Butera
The fun of Mr. Butera’s AP Environmental Science course extends beyond the classroom.
On September 26th and 27th, the students of TJ science teacher Brett Butera’s AP Environmental class participated in an annual forest plot inventory of Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). By engaging in this plot inventory, students were able to witness the progression and falls of the national park as they occur naturally. This trip serves not only a purpose for the AP students, it also helps the RMNP conduct research for certain plots.
As students gathered in the mountainous-terrain, Butera created an exciting, educational, and engaging trip for all of his students. The main purpose of the day trip was to get students involved with the environment and question how they can impact the ecosystem that they live in.
In this trip, Butera found a way to include teachers from different departments within the school. U.S. history teacher Garien Behling has joined Butera for the AP Environmental class field trip each year since he arrived at TJ. “My favorite part of each trip is participating in the discussions that come out of the learning and field work,” explained Behling. Being a part of the trip makes learning about the forest fun and interesting for all who attend.
Students enjoyed a breath of fresh air for the day while conducting a forest inventory. “I learned about different types of trees and expanded my knowledge on the identification of trees,” described junior Aubrey Prime-Morales. Being able to identify different types of trees is useful for not only the national park service, but other people as well. Different trees are indicators ofimpactful ecological effects around them. “I would gladly go again, and I enjoyed the experience,” stated Prime-Morales.
Overall, AP Environmental is a great class to take because it allows students to think about the footprint they leave on this earth. The AP Environmental Science class trip helps students further understand how to help their surrounding environment.
