Eton School children partnered with the Bellevue Parks Department on Friday, March 9 on a habitat restoration project in Ardmore Park.

Every month this year, students in Eton School’s Room 1 and their teachers have walked to the park to walk the trails, observe and listen in the habitat, write and draw in journals, and, of course, play on the playground and in the forest.

A few months ago, they began land and water lessons, using the sandbox on the Eton playground to construct different land and water forms and pour water into them. The project demonstrated the work of water. Students also studied the work of wind and humans on the land, which often creates erosion.

On the March 9 outing, the class visited the park as stewards of the land, partnering with a park ranger to plant 35 western red cedar trees to help prevent erosion. The ranger gave a short introductory talk and then the students worked to prep the sites, plant trees, water and mulch the trees.

Later in the spring, the class will return to see the impact of their planting on the environment.