In an effort to promote a sense of ownership and town awareness, the Los Gatos Union School District's GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program, RBF Consulting of San Jose and the town of Los Gatos teamed up to create a project that would teach young students about planning and problem solving.

After more than a month of studying the trail, eight students from four area schools presented their findings to the Los Gatos Planning Commission on Nov. 13. The students were third-grader Christopher Xu, fifth-grader Matthew Knecht and fifth-grader Ellen Rockdale of Blossom Hill Elementary; fourth-grader Katie Davis, fifth-grader Daniel Lytton, and fourth-grader Ian Rajczi of Lexington Elementary; and fifth-grader Sean Huntley and fifth-grader Jamie Farhi-Humphrey of Van Meter Elementary.

The students gave a Power Point presentation while taking turns to explain what they had learned from field trips to the site.

The students concluded that there is a need for information kiosks, drinking fountains (for people and dogs), more garbage cans, a sitting wall at the entrance of the gate—for which they made colorful tiles—as well as the replacement of signs and bollards.

The children presented a lively 3-D model of the envisioned trail entrance, as well as several designs for the kiosks.

"The kids did a pretty impressive and professional job," said Associate Planner Suzanne Davis, who helped oversee the project.

"They soared beyond expectation," said Laura Worthington-Forbes, vice president of project sponsor RBF Consulting. "These are very bright kids. They put in so much time asking questions. I think this really gave them an idea of what makes a place desirable to live in while also giving them ownership of the town they live in."

The trail entryway was selected by Worthington-Forbes and the town because of its manageable size. "It was perfectly suitable for third- through fifth-graders," Worthington-Forbes said. "And it is also a hot spot for Los Gatos."

The children took five two-hour after-school periods to study the trail. Not only did they measure signs and mark the placement of fountains and kiosks, but they interviewed trail users for their opinions about changes to and upkeep of the site.

Nine-year-old Daniel Lytton of Lexington Elementary was in charge of interviewing trail users. "It was a lot of fun," Lytton said. "The presentation went pretty well. I think the planning commission liked it."

Los Gatos Union School District GATE coordinator Terry Clark said the project was well-received at the planning commission meeting and that it is hopeful that the plans will now be heard by the town council, as they were intended.

"They had a wonderful time," Clark said. "The key is that these kids are finding out that their ideas are valuable and that they can express well-thought-out ideas about land use and planning."

In addition to detailing their findings, the students provided the commission with "action steps" for each individual project, which included their proposed changes, the expected time commitment for the project and the people who would be involved, such as the town council, the community and the planning commission.

Worthington-Forbes said the town's redevelopment agency is looking at the smaller improvements that were proposed as well as projects that can be implemented over time.

"Our mission for this class was fairly simple—to inspire and ignite in these students an interest in planning," Worthington-Forbes said. "We are hoping that by providing opportunities such as this class we can start building a sense of ownership in the community at the earliest age possible."