The hike up Owl’s Head Mountain in Dorset to the Gettysburg Quarry was more than just a steep hill to climb. It was an opportunity for second graders at Flood Brook School to apply their classroom learning to the real world around them.

“We had spent quite a bit of time leading up to the field trip learning about rocks and the history of the area,” said FBS second grade teacher Allison Mazzullo. “The story of the local marble industry is the story of oceans and old forest, time, labor, and community. Their joyful reaction to seeing the quarry shows what can happen with strong background knowledge.”

Before heading out and up, the students had learned about the fundamentals of the three basic rocks with the help of a parent, who just happens to be a geologist. Igneous rocks (granite) are formed when hot molten magma cools down and hardens over time. Sedimentary rock (limestone) is the product of tiny bits of rock pressed together over time.

But the rock star that day was Metamorphic rock. Metamorphic rocks develop when existing rocks are changed over centuries of heat and intense pressure deep under the Earth’s surface. The result is the marble found at the Gettysburg Quarry in Dorset, so named because the stone mined there was used for the gravestones of soldiers buried at the Civil War Gettysburg National Cemetery, in Pennsylvania. 

While heading toward their destination, the students imagined themselves as 19th-Century miners walking with draft horses up and down the mountain. They were mesmerized by the various stone cuts that were plain to see on the side of the rocks. 

Once at the quarry their imaginations continued to flourish. One student observed that while they were surrounded by forest, by being in the quarry they were actually standing inside the mountain. 

“It was really fun to see children excitedly connecting their school learning to the outside world,” said second grade teacher Karen Steever. “We live in a state with rich historical and environmental treasures, and it’s so rewarding to experience these things through the eyes of children.”

And in every group of children there’s a comedian. In this case, one particular imp proclaimed the adventure to be, “Marbleous."

(Photo above: On their field trip to Owl’s Head Mountain in Dorset, the Flood Brook second graders and staff apply classroom learning to the real world around them.)

The Flood Brook students were mesmerized by the various stone cuts that were plain to see on the rocks inside the Gettysburg Quarry on Owl’s Head Mountain in Dorset.

“It was really fun to see children excitedly connecting their school learning to the outside world,” said second grade teacher Karen Steever.