Mason County Partnership
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Mason Conservation District (MCD), Pacific Shellfish Institute (PSI), Capitol Land Trust (CLT), South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group (SPSSEG), Pacific Education Institute (PEI), and Puget Sound Estuarium (Estuarium) have been providing Mason County students with environmental education, career connected learning, and hands-on activities for many years. Collectively, our group is called the Mason County Partnership (MCP). In 2015, the group started working with the Shelton School District (SSD) to update its science curriculum and introduce FieldSTEM. Today, our programs serve Shelton, Hood Canal, and Pioneer School Districts. Our mission is to promote the sustainable use, conservation, and restoration of natural resources in our community by prioritizing youth education to prepare the next generation of conservationists and nature enthusiasts.
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Outdoor Learning
Mason County Partnership provides outdoor learning experiences for around 3,400 K-12 students in Mason County yearly. We are always looking for opportunities to expand into new schools and reach more students. The outdoor learning experiences this program supports align with PEI’s FieldSTEM model, an approach to educational design helping schools implement equitable environmental & sustainability education. FieldSTEM infuses outdoor learning experiences with integrated, career-connected, locally relevant, & field-based strategies that aim to advance science literacy & inspire decision-making for sustainable communities. By using natural systems to address authentic questions through inquiry, engineering design, & collaborative decision making, these grade-level experiences also meet the WA K-12 Integrated & Environmental Sustainability Learning Standards. In this way, students will develop a civic-based foundation for applying their knowledge of ecological, economic, & socio-cultural systems to meet the current & future needs of communities. The K-12 FieldSTEM matrix is reviewed each year by MCP & teachers to ensure that WA state standards are applied to district-wide student learning. Find the field experience that would be available to your student's grade level below.
Funding Received for Environmental Education
RCO Outdoor Learning Grant OSPI Outdoor Learning Grant
Russell Family Foundation City of Shelton
Washington DOH Squaxin 1% Grant
Skokomish 1% Grant Shelton Skookum Rotary Club
Funding Received for Environmental Education
RCO Outdoor Learning Grant OSPI Outdoor Learning Grant
Russell Family Foundation City of Shelton
Washington DOH Squaxin 1% Grant
Skokomish 1% Grant Shelton Skookum Rotary Club
Kindergarten
Twanoh State Park Field TripFor this educational experience, we take approximately 500 Kindergarten students to Twanoh State Park to learn about forest and beach ecosystems. Our partners at the Puget Sound Estuarium operate a touch tank station, where scuba divers collect specimens from the beach depths and assist students in identifying and handling these creatures. Additionally, MCD and the Pacific Shellfish Institute study the other life forms that depend on the estuary and emphasize why maintaining clean waters is crucial for all life forms.
Partners: Puget Sound Estuarium & Pacific Shellfish Institute 
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1st Grade
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This event is provided by Puget Sound Estuarium in partnership with the Squaxin Island Tribe. Students will learn how water travels through a watershed and the impacts that human activities have on water quality and habitats. The lesson is supported using the Enviroscape, a 3-D watershed model
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2nd Grade
Skokomish EstuaryTo provide an enriching experience, we collaborate with Lisa Belleveau, a Habitat Biologist for the Skokomish Tribe. We guide about 350 students to observe the various life forms and ecological systems in the estuary. The experience includes several stations: a guided hike to explore native plant species, an activity at the boardwalk observation area, an olfactory sensory station to learn about salmon migration, a beach specimen station, and a station to learn about the components of the estuary. During the field trip, students witness the active restoration of reclaimed lands and gain insight into the cultural, historic, and present-day importance of the estuary.
Partners: Lisa Belleveau (Habitat Biologist for the Skokomish Tribe) |
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3rd Grade
Kennedy Creek Salmon Trail Field TripThis event is provided by South Puget Sound Salmon Enhancement Group. Students visit Kennedy Creek Salmon Trail where they observe salmon spawning behavior, dissect salmon, and explore habitat and stewardship watershed initiatives
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4th Grade
Little Skookum Shellfish Farm Field TripWe collaborate with the Pacific Shellfish Institute, Puget Sound Estuarium, and Chelsea Farms to bring about 300 fourth graders from Shelton and Pioneer School Districts to Little Skookum Shellfish Growers. During their visit, students explore the beach, where they learn to identify native and non-native clams and have the opportunity to interact with other creatures found in the inlet, such as crabs, snails, and jellyfish. They also learn about plankton and their important roles in nature, and they get to use professional research equipment to collect and observe plankton under microscopes. To complete the shellfish experience, Chelsea Farms prepares fresh clams for the students to try.
Partners: Chelsea Farms, Puget Sound Estuarium, Pacific Shellfish Institute, & Little Skookum Shellfish Growers 
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5th Grade
Cranberry Lake Forest EducationThe 5th graders from Pioneer School District visit the Cranberry Lake Forest Education and Research Center to learn about forestry and explore a protected forest and lakeshore. During their visit, the students have the opportunity to experience life as a forester by learning how to measure trees and canopy, as well as conducting a vegetation plot survey. They also explore different types of forest ecosystems to observe the connections between forests, weather systems, and the various lifeforms within them.
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Forest Festival Field DayDuring our Forest Festival Field Day, along with our partner Green Diamond, we take nearly 400 5th-grade students from the Shelton School District to Mason Lake to educate them about forestry. We collaborate with several organizations to give students a comprehensive understanding of forest products, practices, and the economic impact on our community.
Our partners include Green Diamond, Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group, Shelton Youth Connection, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Washington Department of Natural Resources, Sierra Pacific Industries, Central Mason Fire & EMS, Continental Floral Greens, Cedar High School, and Mason County Forest Festival Court. 
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6th Grade
Hilburn Preserve Field Trip6th graders from Shelton School District visit Capitol Land Trust's, Hilburn Preserve. During the visit, they learn about the history of Goldbourough Creek and work together to generate ideas for further restoration of the area. The nearly 300 students are taught to survey the land and use engineering equipment to create restoration plans. They also actively take part in the restoration process by removing invasive blackberry from a section of the preserve.
Partners: Sarah Croston, Education and Outreach Coordinator for Capitol Land Trust |
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7th Grade
Bayshore Preserve Field Trips Led by our partners at Capitol Land Trust and the Puget Sound Estuarium, students visit Bayshore Preserve twice to study aquatic macroinvertebrates, assess stream flow, observe spawning salmon, explore marine life, and collect data about salt marsh changes.
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8th Grade
Sustainable Agriculture at Skokomish Valley Farms
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This field experience is designed to help 8th-grade students understand the connection between the food we consume and the processes involved in bringing it to our plates. They also learn about sustainable practices within these processes. This spring, students had the opportunity to contribute to combating food insecurity by participating in the harvest of excess lettuce from the farm. The lettuce was then sent to one of the Mason County food banks. About 300 Oakland Bay Junior High and 100 Pioneer Middle School 8th graders participate in this experience.
Partners: Tessa Halloran, Small Farms/Master Gardener Program Coordinator |
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High School
Service Projects
Students will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of service projects to help better our local environment. This year, we partnered with local high schools to plant native plants and remove scotch broom from some natural areas.
EnvirothonMCD coordinates with Shelton School District High Schools to provide natural resource education to students participating in Envirothon, an environmental and natural resource conservation problem-solving, teambuilding, and leadership experience for high school students. We also coordinate with local partners to provide students with the opportunity for stewardship activities and other hands-on learning opportunities.
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