Science by saddle
<p>Kayla Hern makes eye contact as she passes a horse at Bridal Path Stables during a horseback riding lesson during a class outing.</p>
<p>Jake Stadley takes a snapshot of a fungus species during an environmental science field mapping exercise.</p>
<p>Coeur d'Alene High sophomore, Marina Thaxton, saddles up on Sunny prior to a riding lesson at Bridal Path Stables in Hayden during a field trip Thursday with the school's environmental science class.</p>
HAYDEN - Learning about flora and fauna is a whole lot more exciting and interesting when you're smack in the middle of it, especially if you're on horseback.
That was the consensus Thursday of 11th-grade students in Coeur d'Alene High School teacher Robbyn Thomas' environmental science classes.
"I'd rather be out here than in school," said Jackson Helgren, 16.
Thomas, who also teaches biology, took about 45 students out of the classroom this week to Bridle Path Stables on Lancaster Road in Hayden.
From there, the lesson trail went through the fields and into the 640 mostly wooded acres surrounding the stable.
"You get to learn firsthand. It's better than from textbooks," said Jake Stadley, 16.
Thomas had students alternately travel out on foot and on horse to "map an ecosystem."
The pedestrian students staked 10-by-10-meter patches of ground and took samples by photograph, of trees, plants, mushrooms, and signs of wildlife.
The students will be creating multimedia presentations of their findings.
Students Helgren and Stadley discovered evidence of what is likely now a clutch of young birds - about seven cracked eggshells.
"They're probably pheasant, or turkey," Stadley said.
While on horseback, with a different perspective, the students are able to examine a broader area, Thomas said.
The environmental science classes are a new offering at CHS.
Thomas believes getting the teens outside for a lesson makes environmental learning real, and could inspire them to go into a related field.
She grew up around horses, studied horticulture in college and had lots of friends who were in forestry, and said those are just a few of the environmental science-related careers.
"I thought if I could ignite one student to become a vet, to work with nature, or for Fish and Game. I want these kids to see that there's a lot more they can do. They can even have a place like this," Thomas said, pointing to the stables, pastures and woods.
The trip was also an opportunity for students to see a successful business woman in action in a science-related field, Thomas said.
Angie Hilding, owner of the stables and trails, is helping subsidize the cost of the students' science lessons in the saddle.
"We just want to get people to experience this beautiful country from horseback," Hilding said.
The bulk of the trip is being paid for by the students, and through private donations. The school has offered to pay for those students who cannot afford to go. Financing for future outdoor lessons will come from student fundraising efforts.
"It's environmental science. These kids need to be outside," Thomas said.