ASTM International is continuing its sponsorship of educational programs for elementary school students at Riverbend Environmental Education Center in Gladwyne, Pa. Riverbend sends nature experts to nearby schools to expand on students' life science lessons and students make field trips to the center to receive hands-on experience with concepts learned in class.  ASTM is a longtime sponsor of Riverbend's programs.

Tim Brooke, Assistant Vice President, Technical Committee Operations, ASTM, looks on as fourth-grade students from Bridgeport Elementary School study a specimen held by Stacey Carr-Poole, Director of Education, Riverbend. The students visited Riverbend on April 23 for a hands-on lesson on the ecosystems supported by watersheds.

First graders from Bridgeport Elementary School learned about ponds and streams during their visit to Riverbend on May 26. Students, seen here with Daniel Smith, Assistant Vice President, Technical Committee Operations, ASTM, learned about two different types of water, calm (pond) and moving (stream), and about the life cycles of water-based animals such as frogs and toads. Subject matter covered during the visit coincided with lessons from the children’s life sciences class.

On Friday May 7, third grade students from Whitehall Elementary School visited the Woodmont Estate for a nature program focused on watersheds and presented by the Riverbend Environmental Education Center in Gladwyne, Pa. Some of the students took a break from exploring the ponds and streams at Woodmont to pose with Teresa Cendrowska, Vice President, Global Cooperation, ASTM International. 

ASTM also helps Riverbend bring nature to local schools. In addition to having its experts visit science classes, Riverbend runs a Nature Club afterschool program for second grade students at Conshohocken Elementary. During a Nature Club meeting on May 26, students learned about watersheds, streams and lakes and also examined compost. Here, second graders pose with Michael Wells, the Graphic Artist at ASTM who designed the Nature Club T-shirts the children are wearing.

ASTM PR Contact: Erin K. Brennan, Phone: 610-832-9602; ebrennan@astm.org

Release #8633