In July 2022, Mill River Greenway Initiative River Guides Wendy Stein and Karen Bryant, partnered with Sarah Johnson, Forbes Library Head of Children’s and Young Adult Services, to present to the community MRGI’s Mill Riverwalk Adventure Kit for the Young Child.
As you can see from the story unfolding in pictures above, the children enjoyed reading river related stories, as well as creating their own boats to float on a makeshift tin foil river. John Sinton, one of the MRGI founders and author of Devil’s Den to Lickingwater: The Mill River Through Landscape and History, inspired developing an educational component. Wendy and Karen, inspired by John and other MRGI educators, collaborated in designing Riverwalks for families in the community to access from the public library.
The Mill Riverwalk Adventure Kit for the Young Child is geared loosely for children pre-k through first grade and is the first of two experiential self-guided pilot programs being introduced.
Stay tuned, the Mill River Explorers for Elementary Kids will be available in the near future! Like the younger child version, it will be available for check out from Forbes Library.
Written by Wendy Stein
MRGI River Guide and former Preschool Director
In late May, Mill River educators finally got INTO the river, after a year of workshops exploring Mill River mapping, environmental art, history and storytelling. For the fourth 
Brita’s enthusiasm sparkled like the afternoon sun on the stream as she turned over stones and showed us creatures clinging to the shiny undersides. Many of us were surprised to discover that squiggles we might have mistaken for scratches or dirt were in fact immature aquatic insects. One teacher reflected how exciting it was to “discover things that we hadn’t seen before that were there all along.” 
Bursting with questions about the wriggling nymphs we observed up close in tubs of water, Brita directed us to diagrams to help us identify and categorize what we were seeing. Brita and John Sinton shared their expertise about macroinvertebrate behavior, including the distinction between “clingers” and “swimmers.” John helped us imagine how caddisflies “connect the river” by making webs of silk thread to catch their food. 
“Is the caddisfly eating the mayfly, or eating algae off the mayfly?” Drama abounded in the squirming world we observed through magnifying glasses. Everyone noticed something different. One teacher was surprised to find many different kinds of mayflies. Another teacher reflected on a “renewed sense of reverence for the river.” Everyone felt a sense of wonder and curiosity: “mystery makes me curious to find out what else I can learn!” The more we learned, the more 
Resources shared by Brita Dempsey:
“What do you see? How does it make you feel?” asked Paul Wetzel, Curriculum and Research Administrator, 
Paul’s theme for the interactive discovery walk was the psychology of landscape, inspired by a quotation from Maya Lin. “
“Control and command” is the phrase Paul used to describe an approach to water management visible in the levees, dams, former mill sites, floodwalls and floodgates along the Mill River. Standing on the levee across from the site of the former Maynard Hoe Factory, Paul asked, “Why was there so much flooding in Northampton?” Encouraging people to think about what was going on upstream, he revealed through photos and historical records the story of 
Curious about the history of flood management, participants followed the Mill River downstream on the lookout for evidence. “You get to see a cross section of the levee!” Paul exclaimed, pointing out flood barrier supports in the wall. Leading the way behind the former Felt Building, Paul brought the group to a bridge overlooking the 1940 diversion of the Mill River by the Army Corps of Engineers. It was an “aha” moment for many in the group who saw and understood the history of this turn in the river for the first time. 
Everyone left the walk brimming with new ideas and questions about past, present and future interactions between people and their river environments. Gina Hall, Museum 
Twenty teachers gathered after school in early March for a private tour of the 
After the tour, teachers gathered in a circle in the gallery to share ideas for engaging students. The dialogue reflected participants’ wide-ranging contexts and interests. 
The importance of “slowing down” and “paying attention” were key takeaways for participants in the Mill River nature journaling workshop on a balmy afternoon in early October. Seven educators and five River Guides gathered along the Mill River trail for the 2021 kick-off event of 
Jan led the group along the Mill River trail to “Pebble Beach,” a name given by 3rd graders who frequented this flotsam-strewn meander during their annual river study. Carol introduced the group to a journaling activity called Event Mapping, in which an explorer records their wandering path with a mix of words, images and symbols. “The purpose is to create a trail of encounters as you, the explorer, move through a particular place, at a particular moment, asking, ‘What’s going on here?’” (from Hannah Hinchman, A Trail Through Leaves). Carol invited participants to disperse and explore along the river for the next thirty minutes, before reconvening to debrief their experiences. 
De-briefing their experiences, participants highlighted the quality of time: “Taking time to settle in, slow down and notice” and “how valuable it is to observe undistracted for a good length of time.” Teachers were eager to bring this experience to their students. Sally Imbibo facilitated event mapping with the JFK Middle School Environmental Club and reflected, “
Watercoloring with water from the river.
