Austin Youth River Watch Student Activities

2004-2005 School Year

Date	Number of Student Participants	Activity
8/20/04	6	Students visited Waller Creek @ Waller Creek Center and learned about riparian areas – the land closest to water, and how healthy native vegetation in the riparian areas contributes to water quality and quantity in streams.
8/20-31/04	20	Students set Academic, River Watch and Personal Goals for the Fall Semester
9/7-13/04	na	First Days for four Volunteer Interns from the University of Texas at Austin as part of the Hornsby Bend Ecological Mentorship Program
9/22/05	na	Coordinator gave a Presentation about Austin Youth River Watch to participants in the Austin to Bastrop River Corridor Project
10/9-11/04	4	Native Plant Donation from First Unitarian Universalist Church and Volunteer Day. Students dug up plants from the church yard on the 9^th and planted them at the AYRW Eco-House at Hornsby Bend on the 11^th.
10/16/04	1	Student volunteered with AYRW booth at Festival de las plantas.
10/18/04	8	Students walked to the Colorado River from the AYRW Eco-House at Hornsby Bend and also played volleyball in the front yard.
10/22-23/04	3	Young Women’s Campout and 24-Hour Water Quality Study at Tabor – Water Quality Protection Lands
11/6-7/04	5	Young Men’s Camp Out at Texas Nature Conservancy’s Barton Creek Habitat Preserve
11/16/04	9	Austin Museum of Art
11/17-29/04	30	Students visited Longhorn Dam and discussed Floodplains and Floodwaters at the spot where Town Lake becomes the Colorado River. Some students also visited Tom Miller Dam where Lake Austin flows into Town Lake.
12/3-4/04	12	Young Women’s Lock-In and Retreat at the Austin Youth River Watch Eco-House at Hornsby Bend
12/6-10/04	32	Students Evaluated How they did on their Semester Goals.
1/6-12/05	31	Students set Academic, River Watch and Personal Goals for the Spring Semester.
1/25-2/1/05	31	Students discussed “What will Life be like in 10 Years?”
2/4/05	5	Students learned about native trees from AYRW neighbors at TreeFolks, Austin’s community tree planting folks. Students set out flags marking the spots where other volunteers would plant 2005 trees the following day.
2/1&10/05	10	Students learned about Dillo Dirt and looked at ducks and other wildlife at the City of Austin Biosolids Management Plant at Hornsby Bend.
2/24/05	5	Students visited the Gorge Washington Carver Museum.
3/ 4-5 /05	3	Young Men’s Lock-In and Retreat and students attended the LCRA Spring Student Symposium on the 5^thStudents of the Austin Youth River Watch were awarded the 2004 – 2005 Einstein Award for the Most Consistent and Best Quality Data contributed to the LCRA’s Colorado River Watch Network.
3/12-17/05	3	Spring Break Ecological Learning Adventure – The Big Thicket and Eco-Regions of East Texas - Students camped at Stephen F. Austin State Historic Park, Sea Rim State Park, Martin Dies Jr. State Park and Buescher State Park and visited telescopes, the beach, The ship, Elissa, in Galveston, rode the ferry, hiked in the Big Thicket, saw alligators, birds and other wildlife and also canoed.
3/17/05	na	JV Environmental Services contributed soil and Volunteers from Gethsemane Lutheran Church volunteered and installed a garden in the back yard of the AYRW Eco-House at Hornsby Bend.
3/23/05	1	Student helped manage the pond in the backyard and learned about the importance of plants in aquatic ecosystems.
4/8/05	4	Students looked for and identified various species of benthic macroinvertebrates (water bugs) and analyzed what the species composition indicated about water quality.
4/14/05	3	Students observed birds and other wildlife around the ponds and the river at the City of Austin Biosolids Management Facility at Hornsby Bend.
4/18-5/6/05	36	Students helped plant garden plants and seeds in new AYRW garden beds.
4/22/05	4	Students gathered for Earth Day Celebrations on Barton Creek below Barton Springs with fellow water monitoring high school students from the LCRA’s Colorado River Watch Network. Students tested water all together, learned to identify native fish and benthic macroinvertebrates and met a friendly snake.
4/23/05	6	Students taught passersby about water quality and demonstrated water quality tests at Outdoor Kids Day in the park near Martin Jr. High.
4/25/05	2	AYRW students taking AP Environmental Science had a field trip to Hornsby Bend in which they helped demonstrate the water quality monitoring tests for their fellow students.
4/30-5/1/05	5	Young Women’s Campout at Texas Nature Conservancy’s Barton Creek Habitat Preserve.
5/9-13/05	32	Students completed End of Year surveys and reviewed how they did on their Semester Goals.
5/14-15/05	4	Young Men’s Campout and 24-Hour Water Quality Study at Tabor – Water Quality Protection Lands
5/16/05	6	Senior Dinner
5/05		High School Graduations!!!
6/6/05	6	Students visited the Gorge Washington Carver Museum.
6/7/05	7	Students toured the LBJ Library and Museum – visited the temporary exhibit on the swinging 1960s.
6/9/05	8	Students visited the Dougherty Arts Museum and viewed an exhibit in a variety of media including paintings, sculpture and other forms of art.
6/13/05	6	Students toured the LBJ Library and Museum – visited the temporary exhibit on the swinging 1960s and visited the permanent exhibits on President and Ladybird Johnson throughout the museum.
6/20/05	8	Students toured the campus of the University of Texas at Austin.
6/21/05	9	Students tested water and learned about endangered bird habitat at the Texas Nature Conservancy’s Barton Creek Habitat Preserve.
6/22/05	9	Students toured the Austin Museum of Art for the exhibits of photographs of American Musicians and paintings of various perspectives in the Grand Canyon. Students also visited ArtHouse for their exhibit of new American talents.
6/23/05	6	Students toured the Austin Museum of Art for the exhibits of photographs of American Musicians and paintings of various perspectives in the Grand Canyon.
6/27-28/05	18	Students visited Mt. Bonnell and discussed the sources and treatment of Austin’s Drinking Water
6/29-30/05	19	Students and five additional volunteers visited a local horse farm and learned beginning principles of how to take care of and ride horses.
7/6/05	6	Students saw the Fighter Pilot IMAX film and visited the Texas State Capitol where they saw the Governor.
7/7/05	5	Students saw the Fighter Pilot IMAX film.
7/11/05	7	Students toured Cave Without a Name in the Hill Country.
7/12/05	7	Students went caving spelunker-style in Whirlpool Cave with five adult volunteers including Scott Hiers of the City of Austin Watershed Protection and Development Review Department and Julie Jenkins – a local expert on Whirlpool Cave and Caves in Austin associated with the Edwards Aquifer. Students learned about recharge features and caves and conquered personal fears of tight spaces.
7/13-14/05	13	Students and additional adult volunteers canoed and had a pizza party. Students canoed between Zilker Park and Cold Springs, discussed the Edwards aquifer and saw many birds and other wildlife. Canoe time was provided by courtesy of Zilker Park Canoe Rentals.