Colorado Parks and Wildlife

more information to come....

Rivers Edge West is committed to providing educational opportunities for the next generation of stewards and believes that it is a critical component to the success of a healthy watershed.

To keep rivers healthy, RiversEdge West teaches youth how they work and gets them excited about healthy riverside habitat. RiversEdge West takes students to the Colorado River when possible  or brings a river education to the classroom. Standing on the sandy banks of the Colorado or Gunnison Rivers is a powerful recipe to create future river stewards. It is important for our youth to hy they are important so that they can help protect these wild places throughout their lives. RiversEdge West integrates classroom projects with outdoor river curriculum tailored to meet school district standards for 3rd and 4th grades. Students learn how about the important role that healthy river flow rates are,plant diversity and healthy riparian habitats have in our ecosystem the need for biodiversity, what invasive, non-native plants are, they explore the predator/prey relationship between the tamarisk plant and the tamarisk beetles, and get an up-close look at the life cycle of the tamarisk beetle (including time to observe live tamarisk beetles)and habitat health. For college students, RiversEdge West discusses in greater detail the impact that changing hydrology and climate change is having on riparian ecosystems, the challenges to river restoration, and the nuances of biological control.  Regardless of their age, students They also learn a more foundational lesson – that individual actions make an impact.  If transportation is available, students can monitor tamarisk beetles during riverside classroom sessions during the spring and summer months.
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Grade:  Grades 3-4, College, adults and families,
Language: English
Experience Type: indoor classroom, outside field trips along the river
Cost: free
Website:  https://riversedgewest.org/services/education-program, https://riversedgewest.org/youth-education