CANTON — It's not every day that eighth-graders use the word "awesome" to describe school — but Kids in the Creek isn't just any day in class.

As Waynesville Middle School student Tony Duckworth explained, the experience of learning about (and wading in) the Pigeon River is a "real good time."

"You wouldn't think there's anything out there, but there is," he said Thursday morning, his waders still wet from the rushing water.

Looking just as surprised, his classmate, Mark Wiggins chimed in.

"It's just amazing what there is in the water," he added. "Most people think there's just fish. There's a whole lot more."

This moment recognition is what Kids in the Creek, created for all eighth graders in Haywood County Schools, is all about. And Eric Romaniszyn is happy to say that he sees it every ...