WOODSTOCK — Students from Bethel and Woodstock received a hands-on lesson about wind energy Thursday.

Fourth-grade classes from Woodstock Elementary School and Crescent Park School in Bethel were invited on a tour of Patriot Renewables LLC’s wind turbine facility on Spruce Mountain in Woodstock.

Tom Carroll, project coordinator for Patriot Renewables, visited with the class last week and did a presentation on wind energy.

“The kids have been fascinated with wind energy and the field trip spurred the kids’ interest even more,” Woodstock teacher Karen Wilson said.

The classes have spent the past month learning about renewable and non-renewable energy.

Crescent Park School teacher Renee Charette said they have expanded the lessons, not just to science but on social studies and the economy.

“It all plays into everything else,” she said. “How energy affects the economy and jobs, and also where these energy sources are best used in the United States.”

Charette and Wilson said they thought the field trip was a great opportunity and something few students get to see up close.

“It’s great that this just happened to be in our own backyard,” Charette said.

“It’s really cool how they can catch the wind,” Emily Fraser, 9, a student at Crescent Park School, said.

Cameron Simard, 9, and Ashley Childs, 10, both of Crescent Park School, said it was great that they were able to see them.

The class recently completed a project on nine types of energy and were required to identify them as renewable or non-renewable.

During the field trip, students asked questions about the height of the towers and learned how they operate.

“I think the coolest thing was actually seeing them move in the wind,” Sierra Morin, 9, of Woodstock Elementary, said.

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