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That’s what Kristine Sandy,
an English teacher at La Crescent High School, would like her
students to think about. The junior class is reading Twain’s novel
“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” and Sandy wants her class to realize the Mississippi is just as much a character as Finn or Sawyer.
“It’s a central character,” Sandy said, standing on the grounds of the Upper Midwest Environmental Science Center on French Island, where her class took a field trip Sept. 19. “It is not just a big ditch with a lot of water.”
Sandy wants her students to understand the Mississippi better, and this is the third year her English classes have gone to the Science Center. They also have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the river — something she thinks students might take for granted living so close and seeing it every day.
Her students study the novel
in class, but at the Science Center they have the opportunity to
view a film about the river’s
history, take a tour of the facilities, measure and identify trees,
and test the quality of the river’s water. The U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers and the Wiscon-
sin Department of Natural Resources serve as guides. Students also walk to outside stations where they can study the trees,
the water and the river environment.
Shannon Stever, 17, was impressed by the center. She also understood the novel better.
“I can see the connection between the book and the river,” she said.
Lukas Petersen, 16, learned about more than just Twain and the river. “I realize my impact on the environment more,” Petersen said.
Ryan Stotts is a reporter for the La Crosse (Wis.) Tribune.
