Mount Lemmon

The Mt. Lemmon field trip is an annual, hands-on field experience that allows students to interact with the environment and practice skills related to biology, chemistry, and earth science. Each student will participate in 5 lab activities at Rose Canyon Lake that reinforce concepts learned in the classroom. This is a fun and exciting experience where students can begin to experience how science in real-life works. The five activities are:

• Observation: Students use one or more of the five senses to gather information record their observations at the time they are made by writing or drawing in a notebook.
• Collection: Students use their knowledge of National Forest Regulations to collect a sample of vegetation or rocks to present at the end of the day.
• Water Chemistry: Students perform multiple water chemistry tests on the Rose Canyon Lake water to check the quality.
• Collection with sketches and rubbings: Students sketch or take rubbings from objects they want to represent, but cannot collect because of their size or National Forest Regulations.
• Bank Erosion: Students study the erosion of the banks surrounding the highways and lake and determine the types of erosion control that the Forest Service is using and why those choices are best.

On the way to the lake we stop at Molino Basin so that everyone can get acquainted with the mountain biomes and vegetation. We also discuss how to preserve a sample from an area and document its location. Then we begin up the mountain and stop at Windy Point and Mrs. Cubillas gives a quick lesson on the Tucson Valley and the historical significance of places from A mountain to Reddington Pass. Then we continue up the mountain to the lake for the lab activities. The day ends with students presenting their findings from the activities to each other by the lake and then taking a trip to the top of the mountain for a picnic lunch.