A Sixth-Grade Vignette on a Walk in the Woods

Last fall, 6th graders set out into nearby Rock Creek Park with dual purposes: 1. Make scientific observations for their studies of rock cycles and formations; 2. Be present and allow nature to inspire their creative writing. Here's just one result. 

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“The leaves crunched under my feet as the trail steepened. Here we go, into the winding wood of Rock Creek Park. I took a deep breath, and entered the whispering woods. My friends chattered as we walked through the narrowing path, deeper, deeper, into the woods. I look at the flourishing colors of fall around me, like a bowl of miso soup. Warm, churning colors that amaze the eye. I hear the symphony of birds singing in the distance, beautiful and serene. We stop to look at rocks formed long before my ancestors, with cracks and crystals. We passed others walking down the ambient path that had widened. We finally came to our destination, a place where the water seemed to change from its murky creek to a midnight blue sky. The rocks were constellations of crystals and specs, like looking at the Milky Way. We ate sticky Starbursts that stuck in my mouth like words I’ll never let out. We then departed from our serene creek visit, back down the path. We talked and laughed, and then came to a stop. We took a minute of silence that felt like a millennia, and looked up at the trees and partially visible sky. The sun flickered through the orange, yellow, and red leaves, almost like little ballerinas dancing through the leaves. Then, the sensation. A sensation almost like a sunlit nap, leaving a positive vibe on all of us. The rest of the trek was uneventful, yet fun. We quickly reached the school, and almost as if it was premeditated, we all went right back to class.”