Photograph by George Sakkestad
Jennifer King (left) and Katie Maher discuss the layout of their magazine.
By Shari Kaplan
As the culmination of their four-week Nature Magazine summer school course, 20 sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders created the Natural Enquirer, a 12-page publication with topics including litter and pollution, creek ecosystems, animal and plant life, outdoor safety, activities on Vasona Lake and the lives of local Indian tribes.
"In this class, they have to be writers, editors, photographers, researchers--everything," says instructor Carol Ann Weber, who was once a ranger with the National Park Service and has a affinity for nature. "I was delightfully surprised that kids wanted to learn about ecology, the environment and nature. I wanted to give them all the opportunities they could have to learn about these things."
Although field trips were not part of the curriculum, many students visited creeks, parks and other outdoor locales on their own, taking notes and pictures along the way. Rangers and other guest speakers also spoke to the class, which helped germinate more ideas.
Trevor MacSwain, who will enter seventh grade this fall, enjoys outdoor activities as well as photography, which suited him well for his position as one of the class photographers. He says he has been interested in photography for several years and enjoys using his father's Olympus 35mm camera.
"I really like taking pictures of nature," MacSwain said, as several friends teased him about one of his "nature photos" for a pollution article that showed a dead fish, which MacSwain informally named "Bob." Photo editor Mimi Hunter, an incoming sixth-grader, worked with the photographers and teaching assistant Anastasia Chang in selecting the right photos for each article.
When illustrations rather than photographs were called for, incoming eighth-grader Stephanie Williams did many of them. Sometimes, she says, she got inspirations when Weber spoke about a certain topic and suggested it might lend itself to an illustration.
"I sit here and start drawing something. Sometimes I might just be doodling, and then I can manipulate it into something," she says.
Among the class's many writers was soon-to-be seventh-grader Tabitha Davis. Her contribution to the magazine was an article on outrigger canoeists whom she knew practised on Vasona Lake.
"I went there, interviewed two people and took the pictures," says Davis, adding that conducting the interviews was both fun and challenging. Although she wrote down some questions, she also found herself coming up with ones "off the top of my head." A small tape recorder helped her keep track of all the answers.
An incoming ninth-grader at Los Gatos High School, Chang's responsibilities included reading and editing all the articles and coming up with headlines. She also addressed readers with a "letter from the editor" and wrote a sidebar listing safety issues in and around creeks.
With two years each of yearbook and journalism classes at Fisher Middle School under her belt, Chang says her teachers and mother encouraged her to sign up as teaching assistant for the summer school class.
"I like making stuff, and I like to write for fun," she adds. "I liked seeing how the yearbook was formed, and I liked seeing the magazine being made. I also liked working with the kids."
During guest presentations, Chang took notes the other students could use for future reference when writing articles. The most challenging part of her job, she says, was when editing conflicts came up with writers.
"Sometimes we disagreed. Some people have strong opinions, and sometimes I do, too. It was also hard because I'm close to their same age," she says. The students eventually worked out compromises or agreements.
Although this is her first time teaching the Nature Magazine class, Weber says she is encouraged by the turnout and plans to do it again next year. She also plans to access more computers, instead of typing all the final drafts on her home computer.
"I'm really amazed at the perspective these kids came from. They did a top-notch job," she says.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, July 31, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved