Windows on the Watershed

The ways we look at the Scarborough marsh watershed - our "windows on the watershed" - have changed over the years. Many of the first European visitors to the new world, such as John Josselyn, must have gazed in wonder at the beauty of this landscape and puzzled about the new plants and animals, and their various uses. As time went on colonial farmers saw the marsh for its rich supply of hay which they learned to harvest efficiently. More recently with our ever-expanding population centers, marshes and wetlands nationwide have been viewed with an eye for development potential and with an eye for the preservation of a natural resource.

Now we wish to provide new views through different sets of windows, to seec, exchange and tour this natural resource, to learn to see the marsh watershed with a renewed sense of wonder and a greater understanding. 

This is a collaborative endeavor between the Scarborough School Department and various local organizations and state agencies. This collaboration was initiated by the Friends of the Scarborough Marsh in early 2001. 

As we look on the marsh watershed through many different windows, we acknowledge that groups and individuals see the value in different ways. This can create controversy.  The responsibility of the Scarborough School Department educators is to make known the various points of view on issues, and to make certain that no one point of view or opinion becomes the only or preferred attitude or persuasion. In this way, we can provide learners with the opportunity to develop a "sense of wonder and a greater understanding" so that they can make informed responsible decisions, become the "responsible and involved citizens" as stated in The State of Maine Learning Results.

So join us in taking a look at the marsh and its watershed in a much deeper way than most have done before:

The Scarborough Estuarine Ecosystem
Curriculum (SEEC) Project is a collaboration
with the purpose of designing, developing,
implementing, and sharing a K-12
curriculum resource focusing on the
watershed that includes the Scarborough
marsh. Teachers, community members
and research professionals will work
together designing and implementing relevant
investigations that examine the "value" of
the watershed ecosystem. Students will gain
a fundamental understanding of the scientific,
economic, and social issues associated with
this estuarine environment through integrative,
authentic, community-based experiences.

The "tour" page is a place for
recreation - for online field trips,
virtual tours, and other methods
of digital exploration. This is
where students, teachers, and
townspeople can create their own
trips or simply step by to see
where others have gone. We are
starting off with two or three trips
in the hopes of inspiring others to
add their own,  and if the trip
itself holds some interest the
methods of taking it can be even
more stimulating.