The Class of 2032 recently traveled to the Olympic National Park Institute (OPI) for a weeklong environmental education experience in one of the Pacific Northwest's most extraordinary natural landscapes.
Set among ancient rainforests and glacial shores, OPI offered students an education that no textbook could replicate. Through the NatureBridge program, these Trailblazers engaged in field-based environmental science studying coastal ecosystems, investigating old-growth forest ecology, and learning to read the natural world with the careful eye of a scientist. Lessons that might otherwise live on a page came to life in the field, where students collected data, asked real questions, and sat with the uncertainty that drives genuine discovery.
Students also pushed themselves physically and as a team, hiking to a cascading waterfall on Mount Storm King and canoeing the glacier-carved waters of Lake Crescent. Each challenge asked students to lead, lean on one another, and discover what they are capable of outside the classroom. Reflecting on the trip, Liam M. ’32 said it was hard to choose just one favorite memory. “We found macroinvertebrates in the Elwha River during our water quality study, and we even saw two bald eagles soaring above the trees. There was always something new to discover.”
The 6th Grade trip to OPI stands as a cornerstone of Sierra Canyon's commitment to experiential learning — the belief that meaningful growth happens when students engage fully with the world beyond the classroom.
#SCLowerSchool #SCExperientialLearning
