Science teacher Sara Stinson gave her 4th grade class a front-row seat to nature’s most dramatic life cycle—courtesy of a live webcam pointed at a bald eagle nest. What she didn’t expect was that watching Jackie and Shadow raise their chicks would transform her students into passionate environmental activists with lemonade stands and a deadline.
The setup was perfect curriculum magic: students observed the eagles building their nest, laying eggs, and eventually watching two chicks hatch and grow. It’s the kind of real-world biology that textbooks can’t replicate. But then Stinson discovered something that shattered the classroom magic. The hunting grounds where Jackie and Shadow survive—the last undeveloped shoreline of Big Bear Lake in California’s Big Bear Valley—was slated to become a luxury housing development. Unless $10 million could be raised to buy the land called Moon Camp, the eagles’habitat would vanish.
When she shared this news with her students, the response was immediate and raw. As fourth grader Evie Cook put it,“When we first heard about this news, it was very sad for us because we are worried that the thing we have been watching for years can go away.”That worry turned into action. One student set up a lemonade stand. Another started plastering local businesses with donation flyers. These kids went from passive observers to active conservationists—assigning themselves homework that actually mattered.
The San Bernardino Mountains Land Trust (SBMLT) and Friends of Big Bear Valley (FOBBV) are spearheading the effort, having already raised about $2.5 million with a deadline of the end of July to secure the remaining funds. The land protects more than just Jackie and Shadow’s hunting grounds; it’s also home to endemic plant species like the ash-gray Indian paintbrush. Both organizations have signaled they’ll pursue a loan if necessary to complete the purchase.
What’s remarkable here isn’t just that kids cared enough to act—it’s that their teacher created the conditions for that caring to happen in the first place. By connecting curriculum to real, living creatures with real, immediate stakes, Stinson showed her students that science isn’t something that happens in a lab or a textbook. It happens in Big Bear Valley, in this moment, and it needs them. If you want to support the effort, donations are being accepted at savemooncamp.org.
About the Author
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson is a contributor to LocalBeat, covering local news and community stories.
