The 5th and 6th grade students of Lake Oconee Academy (LOA) had the wonderful opportunity to travel to St. Simons Island and Jekyll Island, Ga., for a field study trip.  The itinerary for the trip focused on environmental education and the Georgia coast.

The students spent two nights at the Epworth By The Sea retreat center and travelled during the day to sites such as Fort Frederica and the Jekyll Island 4-H Center.  The students took several classes at the 4-H Center including Maritime Forest Ecology (study of the process of succession from the beach into the mature maritime forest), Salt Marsh Ecology (study of food webs, tides, and marsh plants and animals) and Herpetology (hands-on study of amphibians and reptiles).  All the classes were very interactive and engaging to the students.

The trip ended with a visit to Driftwood Beach on the north end of Jekyll Island to observe the powerful effects of beach erosion on barrier islands.

“The learning was all hands-on which made it even better,” said 6th grader Katlin Third.  “We were all exhausted – in a good way – at the end of the day, but ready to learn more!”