Field burning became a spectator sport Thursday for Lecompton Elementary School students.

Students stood by and cheered as volunteer firefighters burned part of a 2 1/2-acre prairie area kept by the school. The fire was to rejuvenate the grassland.

“It’s blazing pretty good,” said fourth-grader Shelby Politte as the fire crackled through nearby tallgrass. “It was pretty cool when it caught on.”

The burn was the first for the 5-year-old prairie area, where students learn about wildlife and plants.

“Kids just love to come out here,” said Denis Yoder, the school’s principal.

The fire burned two areas of the prairie  one of tallgrasses planted by students, the other of grasses that occurred naturally on the land.

Like ranchers who burn their grazing land, Yoder said he hoped the fire would rejuvenate the plants. Burning away the dried plants allows the sun to hit the soil, where the plants’ roots are ready to sprout new life.

Yoder said many teachers incorporated the burning lesson into their curricula.

Richard Brown, a fourth-grade teacher, said his students recently read a book that included a scene about a prairie fire. He planned to draw parallels between the book and what the students saw Thursday.

Brown said he also takes students to the prairie area for journal-writing assignments of describing the outdoors. The space also includes a butterfly garden and bird houses.

“They love to be out here in the outdoors all day,” he said.