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By Susan and Biff Andrews

So, you think you are smarter than a 4th grader? Ok … Today’s subject: The Great Dismal Swamp … Hope you completed your homework. 

Recently, the Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge staff asked if we would be a part of a group of volunteers to visit fourth-grade classes in Suffolk Public Schools as part of a program to “boost hands-on learning,” sharing a presentation about the Swamp.   This project was a long time in the making collaboration between The Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge, Suffolk Public Schools, and The Friends of the Great Dismal Swamp to support the 4th grade curriculum. This massive undertaking delivered the program to all 11 elementary schools, totaling 44 fourth-grade classes in Suffolk (about 1,100 students) in support of their SOLs, which include the History, Geography, and Ecology of the swamp, the people that lived and worked there and used its resources. 

Chris Lowie, GDSWR Refuge Manager and Susan Stanley, wildlife biologist, and their team created a wonderful slide presentation for the students and a training tool for the volunteers. After our training session and a “what have we gotten ourselves into now moment,” we were off to our assignment: Mrs. Langston’s 4th-grade class. We’ve got this, we have grandchildren in 4th grade and roughly 60 years of teaching experience between us … piece of cake … we told ourselves.

 We were delivered to Mrs. Langston’s room. There they were … 26 of them … all in their places with bright, shiny, 4th grade faces. Our deer in the headlights anxiety melted into sheer delight. The room was orderly and cheerful. The students were attentive and engaged. This is the mark of a master teacher.

We brought with us a good assortment of deer antlers, turtle shells, snake skins, turkey feathers, etc. The students’ polite quietness turned into a buzz of anticipation. We were off to a good start.

The SOLs in the 4th grade cover Virginia’s geography, history, as well as scientific topics. These students were prepared. They knew about the Piedmont and could distinguish it from the Coastal Plain; they knew who George Washington was and that he had connections to Suffolk. And they loved seeing slides of the animals that live in the swamp.

So we dove into the topography, history, plants and animals. Their politeness turned into active interest, with raised hands everywhere. They recognized the Turkey feathers we brought, some had been to Lake Drummond, and they knew about the Indigenous people and freedom seekers that resided in the dense forest of the swamp. Flowers. Butterflies. Mammals. Reptiles! They loved the subject matter; we just delivered it to them. As the hour came to an end, we were posed for a picture by Mrs. Langston, holding the Swamp treasures. I hope she treasures the picture as much as we do. What a delightful time we had, and the students did, too! Mrs. Langston’s classroom 

was a perfect setting and her students were perfectly behaved. Kudos to her. But mainly, congratulations to the students, who were attentive, respectful, willing to share their experiences and listen to ours.

So, if you think you are smarter than a 4th grader, take it from two old dinosaurs that taught during the Dark Ages of mimeograph machines and chalkboards … everything in today’s classroom is smart, even the chalkboard, but especially the students.