Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students put the field in field trip last month when taking part in the first of three Envirothon trainings at the Charles Soil Conservation District farm.  

To prepare for the county’s Envirothon competition held in the spring, high school students interested in the environment and science spend the school year learning about natural resources through hands-on activities.  

The academic contest challenges students to solve environmental concerns in the areas of aquatics, forestry, soils and wildlife. A fifth topic changes each year with this year’s focus on non-point source pollution. The trainings are capped off with the county’s Envirothon competition held April 15 at Gilbert Run Park. 

Kyle Mojica, a sophomore at La Plata High School, has been involved in Envirothon for the past two years, while his sibling Samantha, a senior, is in her third year with the program. “It’s cool,” said Kyle, adding that he enjoys learning about wildlife and wants to have a farm one day. “It’s something to do and I definitely wanted in.”  

At the Oct. 15 training, teams of four or five students split up to attend stations devoted to soil, aquatics, forestry and wildlife. They smelled different variants of pine branches collected under the picnic pavilion. “It smells like Christmas,” a student said holding a small cluster of pine needles under her nose while her peers learned about the different types of trees native to Maryland and how to identify them.  

At the soils station, students spoke of CLORPT — shorthand for Climate, Organisms, Relief, Parent Material and Time — the five forces that form soil. Teams at the aquatics area spoke of the “three lungs of the Earth” referring to the rainforests of the Amazon and the Congo Basin, and the tropical forests in Southeast Asia. In the wildlife section, students pored over field guides and studied specimens to correctly identify and record their findings.   

The CCPS team that wins the county competition in April will advance to the Maryland Envirothon held in June at Mount St. Mary’s University. The national competition will be held in July at Mississippi State University in Starkville. 

About CCPS

Charles County Public Schools provides 28,162 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 39 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.

The Charles County public school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability in its programs, activities or employment practices. For inquiries, please contact Dr. Mike Blanchard, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (students) or Nikial M. Majors, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (employees/ adults), at Charles County Public Schools, Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, P.O. Box 2770, La Plata, MD 20646; 301-932-6610/301-870-3814. For special accommodations call 301-934-7230 or TDD 1-800-735-2258 two weeks prior to the event.  CCPS provides nondiscriminatory equal access to school facilities in accordance with its Use of Facilities rules to designated youth groups (including, but not limited to, the Boy Scouts).