Jessica Tierney, left, a Mount Grace Science educator, is shown teaching a group of Royalston Community School second-graders about seed dispersal at the Eagle Reserve. Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust offers several environmental education programs to encourage local students to appreciate the outdoors. They offer field trips, in-class lessons, after-school programs and learning on the land. For more information, visit mountgrace.org. Below, Clare Green, standing, left, in hat, author of “The Little Pine Tree” and North Quabbin trail guide, shares her knowledge about plants and seed dispersal during a field trip to the Eagle Reserve.
Jessica Tierney, left, a Mount Grace Science educator, is shown teaching a group of Royalston Community School second-graders about seed dispersal at the Eagle Reserve. Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust offers several environmental education programs to encourage local students to appreciate the outdoors. They offer field trips, in-class lessons, after-school programs and learning on the land. For more information, visit mountgrace.org. Below, Clare Green, standing, left, in hat, author of “The Little Pine Tree” and North Quabbin trail guide, shares her knowledge about plants and seed dispersal during a field trip to the Eagle Reserve. Credit: Submitted photo

ROYALSTON — Christine Hoegen’s second-grade students at Royalston Community School took their science lessons to the great outdoors recently.

The class had been studying seed dispersal, and with the help of their friends at the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust, viewed and collected seeds in their natural habitat.

Led by Jessica Tierney, a Mount Grace Science educator, the students hiked and explored more than two miles of Royalston’s Eagle Reserve. The Eagle Reserve is a 139-acre mix of woods, wetlands, and open water that is open to the public. It can be accessed by a marked trail located across from 68 Winchendon Road. It is home to many species of plants, nesting eagles, beavers, otters, and other local wildlife. Hoegen describes it as “One of the North Quabbin’s most breathtaking places.”

After protecting the land in 2016, Mount Grace received a Recreational Trails Program Grant to help create low-impact access for all at the Eagle Reserve. A new bridge connecting the Southern peninsula to a small island in the middle of the Reserve was accessed by Hoegen’s students.

The children observed coniferous and deciduous plants and discovered the plants’ roles in the ecosystem. Everyone participated in a seed scavenger hunt and discussed the many ways that seeds travel: by wind, by water, by bursting, and by animals.

To the surprise of the children, during the hike it was revealed that one of the trail volunteers among them was author Dorothy Clare Green. Green is an educator and North Quabbin Guide who is known for her book, “The Little Pine Tree,” which is an adaptation of the Brothers Grimm Fairytale. The students were delighted to receive a copy of her book.

Hunter Vaillette, age 7, described the hike as “… the best field trip I’ve ever had!” and all agreed that they couldn’t wait to visit again with their families.