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Yankton To Host Mo. River School Festival
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| Nancy Teachout studies a list of possible activities for next spring’s first Missouri River Watershed School Festival in Yankton. Others attending Thursday’s meeting are (continuing right) Yankton city parks and recreation director Todd Larson; Andy Burgess with South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks; and Tim Porter with Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. (RANDY DOCKENDORF/P&D) |
BY RANDY DOCKENDORF
randy.dockendorf@yankton.net
It’s not late-night talk show host David Letterman, but next spring’s first school water festival in Yankton has its own Top Ten list.
The May 8 event, known as the Missouri River Watershed School Festival (MRWSF), will be held in conjunction with the May 9 Great Missouri River Clean-Up and Bridge Walk.
The MRWSF is a school event to provide students with hands-on learning about changes in the river ecosystem, water cycles, safety, how activities affect the river and the stewardship of the river.
While the school festival will be held in Yankton, the event will offer a regional emphasis, said Paul Lepisto of the Izaak Walton League. An invitation will go out to schools in southeast South Dakota and northeast Nebraska.
“We want to include both sides of the river and (to invite) schools from both states to jump in,” he said.
The school festival will run from 9 a.m. to noon and feature educational speakers, exhibits and presentations for grades 7-12, Lepisto said.
“The kids can attend six 20-minute sessions (with breaks in between) that they rotate through,” he said. “We are looking to offer 10 sessions, so it’s not one size fits all. If (one session) gets stacked up, or kids can’t hear, they can go to a smaller group for a more personal presentation.”
Students will be provided with a “passport” that will be stamped at each session to show their attendance.
The City of Yankton, state and federal agencies, and other entities are sponsoring the school festival. After months of laying the groundwork, the organizers on Thursday chose 10 topics for the school festival.
The organizing committee hopes to finalize the list of topics within the next month. If a particular session cannot be held, organizers will offer another speaker or activity, Lepisto said.
“It’s a moving target until we get firm commitments,” he said. “It’s more of a wish list.”
The list so far includes:
• Fish of the Missouri River;
• Invasive Species in the Missouri;
• Pallid Sturgeon Recovery;
• Tern and Plover Recovery;
• Stream Meandering Demonstration;
• Missouri River Ecosystem Restoration Plan;
• Water Quality Demonstration;
• River Clean-Ups;
• Tribal Presentation on the river’s significance to Native Americans;
• Climate Change.
The school festival’s organizers are working with educators to make sure the festival sessions meet No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and state standards. They are also checking what is offered at a Ponca State Park festival in northeast Nebraska.
The Yankton festival organizers said they are working to offer a balance of both learning and enjoyable experiences. The festival could incorporate not only science but also history, geography and writing.
The school festival could kick off a daylong learning experience in Yankton, organizers said. The lunch could include Lewis and Clark re-enactors or a speaker at the Riverside Park amphitheater. Then, schools could take afternoon tours on their own of the City of Yankton Waste Water or Water Plant, Gavins Point Dam or the Gavins Point Fish Hatchery.
The school festival sponsors include Missouri River Relief; Missouri River Futures; Missouri River Institute; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission; Nebraska Game and Parks Commission; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Mount Marty College; the Izaak Walton League; the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS); the National Park Service (NPS); the City of Yankton; Keep Yankton Beautiful (KYB) and tribal governments.
For more information on the school festival, contact Mary Robb at (605) 668-5211 or mrobb@cityofyankton.org or Nancy Teachout at (605) 668-5234 or nteachout@ysd.k12.sd.us.
The May 8 event, known as the Missouri River Watershed School Festival (MRWSF), will be held in conjunction with the May 9 Great Missouri River Clean-Up and Bridge Walk.
The MRWSF is a school event to provide students with hands-on learning about changes in the river ecosystem, water cycles, safety, how activities affect the river and the stewardship of the river.
While the school festival will be held in Yankton, the event will offer a regional emphasis, said Paul Lepisto of the Izaak Walton League. An invitation will go out to schools in southeast South Dakota and northeast Nebraska.
“We want to include both sides of the river and (to invite) schools from both states to jump in,” he said.
The school festival will run from 9 a.m. to noon and feature educational speakers, exhibits and presentations for grades 7-12, Lepisto said.
“The kids can attend six 20-minute sessions (with breaks in between) that they rotate through,” he said. “We are looking to offer 10 sessions, so it’s not one size fits all. If (one session) gets stacked up, or kids can’t hear, they can go to a smaller group for a more personal presentation.”
Students will be provided with a “passport” that will be stamped at each session to show their attendance.
The City of Yankton, state and federal agencies, and other entities are sponsoring the school festival. After months of laying the groundwork, the organizers on Thursday chose 10 topics for the school festival.
The organizing committee hopes to finalize the list of topics within the next month. If a particular session cannot be held, organizers will offer another speaker or activity, Lepisto said.
“It’s a moving target until we get firm commitments,” he said. “It’s more of a wish list.”
The list so far includes:
• Fish of the Missouri River;
• Invasive Species in the Missouri;
• Pallid Sturgeon Recovery;
• Tern and Plover Recovery;
• Stream Meandering Demonstration;
• Missouri River Ecosystem Restoration Plan;
• Water Quality Demonstration;
• River Clean-Ups;
• Tribal Presentation on the river’s significance to Native Americans;
• Climate Change.
The school festival’s organizers are working with educators to make sure the festival sessions meet No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and state standards. They are also checking what is offered at a Ponca State Park festival in northeast Nebraska.
The Yankton festival organizers said they are working to offer a balance of both learning and enjoyable experiences. The festival could incorporate not only science but also history, geography and writing.
The school festival could kick off a daylong learning experience in Yankton, organizers said. The lunch could include Lewis and Clark re-enactors or a speaker at the Riverside Park amphitheater. Then, schools could take afternoon tours on their own of the City of Yankton Waste Water or Water Plant, Gavins Point Dam or the Gavins Point Fish Hatchery.
The school festival sponsors include Missouri River Relief; Missouri River Futures; Missouri River Institute; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission; Nebraska Game and Parks Commission; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Mount Marty College; the Izaak Walton League; the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS); the National Park Service (NPS); the City of Yankton; Keep Yankton Beautiful (KYB) and tribal governments.
For more information on the school festival, contact Mary Robb at (605) 668-5211 or mrobb@cityofyankton.org or Nancy Teachout at (605) 668-5234 or nteachout@ysd.k12.sd.us.
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