Forty-four sixth graders in two classes at the Idyllwild School participated in the Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council (MCFSC) 2006-2007 education program which was started in 2003. The program covered the history of fire suppression in the United States, what constitutes a healthy forest, what individuals can do to contribute to fire safety/healthy forests, and what communities can do to contribute to fire safety/healthy forests in their areas. The first day was a classroom presentation and video covering the history of suppression in the United States. The second day Rich Fairbanks of the Wilderness Society gave a talk and PowerPoint presentation on "Fire Behavior in the Mixed Conifer Forest" which he geared toward twelve year olds. The third day the students used an interactive computer program called "Burning Issues" to learn what it takes to conduct a successful prescribed burn by contacting local agencies and affected residents and then measuring the fuel moisture content, humidity, and wind speed and direction. The final day consisted of a field trip to the Riverside County Nature Center where they learned about the native plants and trees and explored the new garden of native plants which are drought and fire resistant.

On the fifth day, the classroom teacher (Lenore Sazer-Krebbers) had each of the students write an essay about what they had learned during the four-day program. The MCFSC sponsored a contest for the students to submit an essay and optionally a poster demonstrating what they learned and educating others. The prizes for the contest were awarded separately for posters and essays to provide the largest number of awards. There were two 1st place prizes of $20.00, three 2nd place prizes of 2 tickets to the local theater (there was a tie), and three 3rd place prizes of $10.00 gift certificates to the local candy and ice cream store (another tie). Students submitted 44 essays and 10 posters for the contest. Each winner was also presented with a certificate of achievement from the MCFSC. The two instructors from the MCFSC judged the posters and essays. The prize winners for their essays were (click their names to read their essays):

1st	Liana Spano
2nd	Mitchell Biley and Justin Stephens (tied)
3rd	Tyla Friemoth

The prize winners for their posters were (click their names to view their posters):

1st	Danika Hitchcock
2nd	Jacob Swanson
3rd	Georgia Reeves and Erec VonSeggern (tied)

Coverage of the event was provided by the Idyllwild Town Crier.

This was the most successful year of the program judging from the quality of the essays submitted. I believe this can be directly related to the adjustments and improvements which have made each year.