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Edgewater 6th graders learn to be FireWise

Contributed by: Einar Jensen on 12/7/2007

At first glance, being FireWise -- modifying your property and home to be more resistant to wildfire -- may not seem appropriate for sixth graders attending Edgewater Elementary School.

That would be a misleading glace, however.

Actually many FireWise principles are applicable to students and their families who live that many miles away from a tradition wildland urban interface setting.

The students in Rhea Oberst's and Gerard Tapia's classes learned about the fire triangle, home fire prevention and the risks of juvenile firesetting at the Mt. Evans Outdoor Lab School on Dec. 6 as part of their week at the Jefferson County School District facility. Their instructors were Evergreen Fire/Rescue's Community Educator Einar Jensen and Training Coordinator Ben Celius.

All of the school district's sixth graders have an opportunity to experience a week in the woods at either the Mt. Evans facility on Upper Bear Creek Road or the Windy Peak facility south of Bailey.

"Teaching the students from Edgewater was challenging," Jensen said, "because their homes aren't surrounded by forested hillsides like my regular students from Evergreen Middle School, West Jeff Middle School and Rocky Mountain Academy.

"It was a challenge, but we learned together that posting your address and reducing fuels in the home ignition zone are applicable in both neighborhoods."

Students also learned about the consequences of playing with matches and fireworks, which also is applicable to rural, suburban and urban settings.

After a brief winter break, new schools will send their students and teachers to the lab schools for week-long adventures. In the spring, Jensen has at least three more presentations at the Mt. Evans facility while educators and firefighters from other Jefferson County fire districts and departments will take the other weeks, usually when an opportunity exists to teach students from their own neighborhoods.

"This program is great," Jensen concluded. "It's a great opportunity to interact with students away from their comfort zones and discuss principles that will help them live more safely in the future. We're lucky to be part of it."


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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Einar Jensen

Evergreen , CO

Einar Jensen has posted 162 stories and 4 comments since joining on 9/21/2005. Einar Jensen 's average story rating is 4.99.
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