ACES Ed from a Parent’s Perspective

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Our two girls have been involved with ACES in several ways including summer camps, field trips, special family events, and at school. We have been thrilled with the educators and greatly appreciate the knowledge base our kids are being exposed to.

Our first experience with ACES Ed was during our oldest daughter’s kindergarten year. Starting in the first few weeks of school, Morgan would come home with interesting tidbits she had learned in her ACES classes about the animals that live in our valley and our local habitat.

Our entire family loved “Beaver Night.” We met at Hallam Lake on a fall evening, and after a witty song about beavers (with all the kids wearing handmade masks), we were guided around at dusk by two ACES Ed teachers. It was incredibly fun tiptoeing around the lake, looking for beaver eyes and tails in the water, and finding teeth marks on the trees. We didn’t see any beavers that night, but heard other animals and talked about how much we all love the outdoors.

In first grade, the whole family came back to Hallam Lake for “Owl Night.” This event involved the kids reading aloud the book Owl Moon by Jane Yolen – and getting to see ACES’ resident great-horned owl eat a mouse for dinner! The families again walked around outside, hooting for owls, in hopes that they would hoot back.

We appreciate so many aspects of ACES Ed in our schools, whether it is a field trip to Rock Bottom Ranch, or the specialized classes that are incorporated in the school curriculum. Our kids are learning about local habitats and ecosystems, and are given the opportunity to appreciate nature and their surroundings at a young age. When family members and friends visit, our daughters often want to take them to ACES at Hallam Lake to show them around. This is great evidence of the impression this programming has had on our kids.

ACES is an incredibly unique organization, and we are fortunate to have it in our valley.

~ Ali Phillips, ACES Ed parent

 

 

 

 

banner photo by Kylie Collins