OCTOBER 14, 2024

by Celeste Irving , ROCS mom (original blog link)

From biking, to fishing, to Adena mounds, and an over-sized eagle’s nest, Highbanks Metro Park has so much to discover. Recently, the ROCS students and staff spent a beautiful fall day there exploring the play areas at the Big Meadow Picnic Area, and discovering the creeks and creatures of the Olentangy River.

The large, covered picnic area at Big Meadows is more than suitable for a school bus full of ROCS kids. The bus, made possible again through a grant from Friends of Metro Parks  (the same grant was awarded for last year’s field trip to Glacier Ridge), had apparently been full of lively singing before pulling up.

“Kali (ROCS teacher) would not stop singing, ‘The Wheels on the Bus!’” one student exclaimed with a smile. The bus ride is an exciting part of any field trip for those who aren’t used to riding a bus each day.

To the left of the picnic shelter, there is a fairly new playground (redone in May of 2023) with towering climbs, slides, and spins. To the right, the necessities, some more swings, and more places to picnic. And straight ahead, a large, green open field, ripe for running, jumping, and the occasional outdoor movie (one of the many activities the park puts on.)

But that’s not all. At the back of the expansive field, there is a single zip-line, where kids will wait as long as it takes to get their chance on the 10-second thrill. And close by that, a few obstacle course looking arrangements with logs and nets and more logs. Oh, and what’s that? A small wooden stage? And over there? A secret looking entrance? What else is back here?!

The natural playground is hidden behind the foliage, with pockets of activities carved out like little rooms in the forest. Some kids balanced on swinging logs, while others climbed the spider web ropes, or made music with various sound sculptures.

Additionally, the students were asked to do accessibility evaluations on both the natural play area and the playground. This exercise has been a reoccurring task since last year, when the students were asked to view their own playground’s inclusiveness and accessibility, with the help of Ingrid M. Kanics from Kanics Inclusive Design Services.

“One of the playgrounds, [at Big Meadows] had some accessibility but the other one did not,” explained a couple of Wrens ( 2nd graders.)  “There were no ramps at all on the playground,” was one of their observations. All of this gives the students ideas of what changes they may or may not want for their play area back at school.

One thing they certainly don’t have the option of adding however, is a creek.

With water ready shoes, nets and cups, the kids went into the creek, looking for the creatures that inhabit the Olentangy River. A water quality activity, which was led by two members of the Metro Parks Staff consisted of looking for which aquatic macro invertebrates were present in the water. With a chart in hand, the students could estimate the level of pollution present because of which animals they saw. Certain animals can only tolerate certain amounts of pollution.

“There were bugs on top, so we knew the water was good, “one student explained to me.

In addition to observing the macro invertebrates, the students had an amazing time catching any and all:

“ We caught a crayfish and a giant fish with a net.”

“Finding fish in the creek was the best. We caught a baby catfish!”

“Yeah, we caught stuff. The catfish was soooo cute.”

“We caught two crawdads. Their claws were huge! Snap, snap!”

“The water was so coooold.”

Shibnum, one of the parent chaperones, showed me a video of the catfish swimming around a container. “They [the Metro Parks Staff] were so great. So informative!” she said.

This particular part of the Olentangy can be accessed through a cut-out path next to the zip-line at the back of the Big Meadows.

All and all, Highbanks is an endless park of discoveries, and it seems the students at ROCS had a great time exploring just a few of its treasures.

-Celeste Irving , ROCS mom