A trip down the 'Big Muddy'

Mark Twain said the Missouri River is too thick to drink and too thin to plow. The Big Muddy doesn’t get the kind of attention the Mighty Mississippi does, but it’s the longest river in North America and pivotal in the history of our nation. When it was time for Lisa Dill’s family to replace the old pontoon boat on Lake Okoboji, her cousins suggested taking it on a journey down the Missouri and giving it away at the end. Dill jumped on board. She wrote about the experience and the river in 'Around the Bend: Floating Down the Missouri River.' Then, school's out for summer, but that doesn't mean we can't still learn. In the first installment of 'Talk of Iowa Summer School,' middle school science teacher Mark Dorhout shares how birdhouses can be a tool to encourage the next generation of citizen scientists.