They were transfixed. Their eyes glued to the ends of three pairs of binoculars, they watched as a flock of birds circled the park lawn for a landing.

"Wow! That's so beautiful!" Naja Sims-Harris squealed as her binoculars followed the flock.

"It's hecka beautiful," her friend Davinyce Cola agreed, her mouth wide open as she watched.

Naja, Davinyce and friend Sakaii Garner, all 9, then flipped through a laminated pamphlet to identify the species. Common finches, they found, but beautiful all the same.

"The birds are really cool," said Sakaii, a fourth-grade student at Markham. "I like their colors and their wings. They're just beautiful."

The girls were some of about 30 people — Markham pupils, their siblings and parents — who visited the shoreline park's Arrowhead Marsh last week to learn about the Bay Area's wetlands and catch a glimpse of the plants and animals that call it home. Their trip was hosted by the Golden Gate Audubon Society's Eco-Oakland program.

Through the program, students such as these from East Oakland public schools participate in year-round studies of science, nature, ecology and conservation in the Bay Area. They visit the Arrowhead Marsh looking for birds and exploring micro-organisms in the water.

"We try to encourage stewardship of the marsh and the local community as a whole," said Amiko Mayeno, education coordinator for the Eco-Oakland program. "It also gives them context for learning. Instead of just learning in the classroom, they experience it in a very real way."

Mayeno engaged students and parents alike with tales about the history of the Bay Area's wetlands and the science behind the tides. She leads them, binoculars in hand, onto a wooden platform overlooking the marshland.

"Let's keep very quiet," she said, her voice lowering to a whisper, "and maybe we'll see an endangered clapper rail."

As if by magic, the giddy group of kids and their parents hush and grasp tighter onto their binoculars in hopes that maybe a clapper rail shows.

It doesn't this time, but that is OK. Pupil Jesus Arroyo finds something else to be excited about: a black-and-white bird with orange legs.

"I would like to see how they flap their wings and fly," he said.

In order for pupils to participate in the program, district teachers have to invest in several hours of study with the organization. It is worth it, said Valentin del Rio, a fifth-grade teacher at Markham.

The Eco-Oakland Program also has weekend activities for families. To learn more, call (510) 635-5533.

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