4. Report on
Observations and Changes in the Pond and Island By First/Second
Graders
The following pictures and
narrative were presented to the Parks and Recreation Committee by the
class. To prepare this presentation, they looked through the pond
photo journals since 1993. They decided which photos to use for the
presentation and then they composed the text to explain each photo.
Here is their chronological photo presentation of changes at the
Sunnyside Park ponds.
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This photo was taken
in January l993.
It shows that there
were LOTS of Canada Geese and Mallard Ducks at Sunnyside
Park.
They were at
the stream in the farm next to the park because the ponds
were frozen and
they needed open water.
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This photo was taken
in March l993.
It shows how big and
rounded the island used to be. There was a lot of space for
the ducks to nest.
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This photo was taken
in May l993.
It shows Canada
Geese and Mallards. It shows lots of green with grass on the
island. The red
osier dogwood is blooming. The
willow tree is standing straight up.
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This photo was taken
in May l993.
There used to be
Canada Geese, many Mallard Ducks and 2 Black Swans.
Sometimes the Canada
Geese, swans, and ducks would go up to people.
The people feed the
ducks bread. The class had email that year from students in
New York City who had studied what happens when people feed
bread to ducks. The class learned that the bread is not
healthy food for the ducks and geese and is not healthy for
the pond water.
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This photo was taken
in November l993.
You can see a
muskrat swimming across the pond with "V" shaped ripples
behind it. The
muskrats make burrows in the island. Their burrows make the
edges of the island weak and the shore of the island starts
to fall apart into the water.
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This photo was taken
in January l994.
The muskrats have
made many burrows in the shore of the island . As the island
was washing away into the pond, it was getting
smaller.
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This photo was taken
in September 1994.
It shows there were
many ducks. There are at least 54 ducks in this
photo!!
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This photo was taken
in September l995.
It shows a line of
farm ducks waddling along the stream towards the big
pond.
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This photo was taken
in September l995.
It shows 6 farm
ducks in the smaller pond. The farm ducks started coming to
the ponds when there weren't as many Mallard ducks and
Canada Geese.
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This photo was taken
in February l996.
Pullman had floods.
The small pond flooded way over its shores.
The water in the big
pond was also high. This shows how the island had high water
and frozen ice around it. The willow tree is falling into
the pond. Its branches were frozen into the ice. We are
wondering if the frozen ice and floods damaged the shores of
the island that already had muskrat burrows.
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This photo was taken
in February l996 also.
It shows how high
the water was from the flood and how the red osier dogwood
branches are frozen into the ice.
The island was already
getting smaller then.
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This photo was taken
a few weeks after the flood in February l996.
It shows a thin
layer of ice on the big pond. You
can see how the island is getting smaller and worn
away.
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In October l997, we
saw a Great Blue Heron on the shore of the big
pond.
We studied this
magnificent bird. Everyone in the class did a painting of
the Great Blue Heron.
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This photo was taken
in October l997.
It shows how the
island has become smaller.
There isn't as much
rounded grassy area for ducks to be on the island.
The willow and red
osier dogwood branches are leaning way over the
water.
We are
wondering if there is not enough land on the island to
support the trees and shrubs.
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ownership of all text, design and images. We request that you not
replicate the webpage designs nor publish the images and text without
permission. For permission contact Kristi Rennebohm Franz at
kfranz@psd267.wednet.edu
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