Heatherwood Elementary fourth graders recently took a short walk to open space near their school, then went through stations set up by Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks to learn more about the land and wildlife.

At a spot with rocks covered in lichen, Boulder volunteer naturalist Renee Jacobsen started with a geology lesson, then passed out samples of rocks so students could compare them to the rocks at the site.

“Rocks really tell a story,” she said. “They tell a story of how the landscape changed. This was once all underwater.”

To end the lesson, students used magnifying glasses to enthusiastically examine different types of lichen clinging to the rocks, hunting for different colors and textures and exclaiming over their finds.

“Right here looks so cool,” fourth grader Mikko Dorr

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