A Field Trip to Omassuo, a Bog in Eura
On April 24th all the 7th graders from Kiukaisten yhteiskoulu and some students from Euran yhteiskoulu (the ones who have been involved in the project) went on a field trip to Omassuo, a bog in Eura.
Students had been given several tasks to complete during the excursion. They worked on their tasks in groups of three members. Mathematics assignment was about measuring the height of a tree. For Mother tongue and literature they were asked to concentrate on using all their senses so that they could write a descriptive essay during the lesson afterwards. The Biology assignment was to identify different plants. The students used an app to do this assignment. The app gave them descriptions and photos of specific plants. After finding each plant, students took a picture and sent it as their response to the question. For Art and Craft lessons, students collected natural materials. Chemistry assignment was to collect wild rosemaries (Rhododendron tomentosum, commonly known also as marsh Labrador tea, northern Labrador tea) for making natural colors for dyeing wool in the classroom. Students took photos and videos to document the trip. They also recorded singing of birds.
The following description of our field trip was written by a 7th grader and translated by two 9th graders
We leave the bus to walk towards the bog. The distance is about 200 meters. Each of us jumps over a ditch. When I have jumped over the ditch I smell a distinct smell of rosemary. I walk along the path. The ground is soft and wet. When I get to the bog, I hear birds singing but it's quickly covered by my friends' talk. Teachers tell us what we should do and when we should get back to the edge of the bog. I leave with my group to do tasks.
One of our tasks is to take a photo of two pupils standing next to a tree. In our group there are three people so one takes a picture and me and my friend go to stand next to a tree. Then we start looking for plants.
We walk around the bog looking for specific plants. The air smells fresh like it had just rained. We find a lot of different plants but there are also some that we are unable to find. We have also picked up different leaves and twigs on the ground, and later we will use them to make an art work. When I'm walking on a bit drier ground, my friend pushes me from behind as if it was an accident and I fall into the bog. I get a small amount of mud water in my mouth. The taste is absolutely horrible. It is like I eating sand and grass. When I'm on the ground kneeling, I hear my friend’s laugh. I lift my head up and see my friend's face which is red because of laughing so much. I feel a soft, cold and wet moss in my hands. I get up, clean my hands on my friend's jacket and start laughing. Then we need to return to the bus.
