North Coast
Serving Humboldt, Del Norte, Lake, Mendocino, and Sonoma Counties

Website Links

ANIMALS

ANIMAL TRACKS WEBSITE! Visit http://www.humboldt.net/~tracker to view the wildlife of the California's north coast and their tracks. The website contains natural history information for each species along with pictures and drawings of their tracks.

BIRDING AND BIRDHOUSES WEBSITE. This is an excellent opportunity for schools to participate in The Birdhouse Network of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology: http://www.birds.cornell.edu/birdhouse The website provides information about cavity-nesting birds, habitat requirements, how to construct or select a good nest box, installing predator guards, nestling periods, and much more. If you join The Birdhouse Network, you'll receive a welcome packet containing a color poster of the top ten cavity nesting birds, field worksheets, instructions for logging onto the website to enter data, and "Inside the Birdhouse," a newsletter specifically for TBN participants. You'll also receive a subscription to Birdscope, the Lab's quarterly newsletter, and access to Nestbox-L, a private email discussion group where participants can exchange tips and share nest box experiences.  A $15 participation fee helps defray the cost of materials and data analysis. Anyone can participate and one nest box is all you need to begin attracting cavity-nesting birds to your area. For more information or to sign up for The Birdhouse Network, visit their web site (above), call (800) 843-2473, or email them at birdhouse@cornell.edu.

NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION WEBSITE. The National Wildlife Federation provides information and resources for creating backyard and schoolyard wildlife habitat areas. Plant trees, spread seeds, and create a schoolyard habitat for migratory birds and other wildlife. Certify your project at http://www.nwf.org/schoolyardhabitats/.

PARTNERS IN FLIGHT. A non-profit concerned with neo-tropical migrants, features a useful guide to local species in the US by region. It includes conservation recommendations for each physiographic area, bird lists, pictures and descriptions of species, as well as scientific details about the habitat. Highly recommended as you study the conservation of local birds. http://www.prbo.org/calpif/education.html.

SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL PARK. This website provides a series of downloadable fact sheets about migratory birds. The website includes information about a student art contest, bird friendly coffee, migratory bird day, and more. http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/MigratoryBirds/

ARKive Images of Life on Earth

ARKive gathers together, into a centralized digital library, films, photographs and audio recordings of the world’s species, creating a record of the world’s biodiversity.  The Web site also has lesson plans and background information.  Updated versions of web navigation software are recommended for viewing images. http://www.arkive.org/

AQUATIC EDUCATION

http://wwwowue.water.ca.gov/

COAST4U The Coastal Commission's Public Education Program website provides information and upcoming events including Coastal Cleanup Day, Adopt-A-Beach, the Whale Tail Grants Program, the "Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds" curriculum, the Boating Clean and Green Program, and other projects. http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/pendx.html

AQUA VENTURER. Aqua Venturer tells the story of water, its treatment and use throughout history (40,000 BCE - 2080 CE), and its importance to life on Earth. Aqua Venturer highlights the vital role of clean water in the development of civilizations and is geared towards secondary students. The accompanying Teacher Guide offers interdisciplinary, standards-based suggestions for using Aqua Venturer in middle-and high-school classrooms and challenges students to discover their local environmental history to make environmental education tangible. Developed by the Water Environment Federation (WEF), an international, not-for-profit, technical and educational services organization representing the water quality field. http://www.aquaventurer.org/

USGS WATER SCIENCE FOR SCHOOLS. Find background information, pictures, data, maps, and quizes on water, water quality, human consumption, the water cycle, acid rain, and more. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/

WATER CYCLE WEBSITE. A comprehensive Water Cycle Website available in 54 languages and contains a downloadable diagram of the water cycle. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycle.html

THE WATER SOURCEBOOKS CURRICULUM. Created by the Environmental Protection Agency, "The Water Sourcebooks" contain 324 activities for grades K-12. This environmental education program explains the water management cycle using a balanced approach, showing how it affects all aspects of the environment. Activities are available online in PDF and are also available on CD-ROM. To order the CD, call (800) 424-4372 or send an email to haertel.jan@epa.gov. For more information about this free resource visit: http://www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/wsb/

WAVES, WETLANDS, AND WATERSHEDS CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES. "Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds" is a classroom activity guide that addresses California's critical coastal and marine issues such as endangered species, marine debris, coastal geology, water use, and much more. It is aligned to the California State Science Content Standards for grades 3 through 8, and includes Community Action lessons adaptable for all ages up to and beyond grade 12. The connection between inland areas and the ocean is emphasized throughout, so the lessons are relevant for students living in all regions of California. For more information , please visit the Coastal Commission's Public Education website at http://www.coastforyou.org. To get the free curriculum click on "Free Resources for Educators."

WILLY THE WATERDROP. Follow Willy the Waterdrop on a jouney from the common household toilet to the sea. The City of Arcata is unique in that it's wastewater treatment is aided by the Arcata Marsh. Go to http://www.humboldt.edu/~ere_dept/marsh/flow1.html to learn more.

ENERGY EDUCATION

DOWNLOAD WIND RESOURCE MAPS FOR CALIFORNIA. New wind resource maps for California are now available. For more information, please go to: http://www.energy.ca.gov/maps/wind.html The Energy Commission has contracted with TrueWind Solutions LLC to generate high-resolution wind maps for California using state-of-the-art numerical modeling techniques along with site data validation. JPG versions of the maps are available for Annual Wind Speed Maps at 30, 50, 70 and 100 meters, Annual Wind Power Map at 50 meters and 50 meter Seasonal Wind Speed Maps are also available (fall, winter, spring, summer). (Note: These JPG files are 300-380 kilobytes.) Please contact the Commission Cartography Office for details about ordering printed versions of maps by calling 916-654-3902.

GENERAL ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Jiminy Cricket Environmental Challenge for 5th grade Teachers and Students Teachers from all JCEC regions can share stories, ask questions, and provide feedback to each other while they complete the Challenge. All teachers are invited to browse to find out more about how they can bring environmental education into their classrooms. Visit

http://disney.go.com/environmentality/jcec/home.html.

EARTH DAY WEBSITE: www.earthday.org

BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT TEACHER'S WEBSITE. The BLM website for teachers contains a library of reference material, student activity plans, curriculum correlations, and teacher resources on the subjects of wildfire and energy. Check out http://www.blm.gov/education/LearningLandscapes/teachers/activities.html

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION INTERACTIVE SITE. This website, coordinated by the DITC-Environmental Education Foundation is an interactive student website, best suited for five to ten-year olds. The site includes facts and quizzes about energy, air quality, animals, pollution, recycling, and water quality. Visit http://www.ditc-eef.org

THE ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY PROJECT. This website provides current science news updates, a teacher exhange and a teacher resource center. Resources include background information on a variety of topics, including energy, food, and water quality. Visit http://www.enviroliteracy.org/teachers-index.php

EPA GLOBAL WARMING WEBSITE.To learn about climate change, check out the EPA Global Warming Site at http://www.epa.gov/globalwarming. The site has up-to-date information on the climate system; greenhouse gas emissions; impacts of climate change; and actions that can be taken at the national, state, local, business, and individual levels.

THE GREEN SQUAD. The Green Squad web site gives kids the tools and skills they need to help locate, and solve, environmental and health problems in their schools. The site is designed primarily for students in fifth through eighth grade, but also offers information for younger and older students as well as parents and teachers. The Green Squad is a collaborative project of the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Healthy Schools Network (HSN) and is available in English and Spanish. http://www.nrdc.org/greensquad/default.htm

NATIONAL PARKS SERVICE LINK TO LEARNING WEBSITE. This web site provides links to educational information related to the National Park Service's mission of natural resource stewardship, preservation, and the protection of park natural resources. Educators can find sample lesson plans from parks across the country, materials for student research projects, teacher fact sheets about a wide variety of topics, and National Park field trip opportunities. Visit http://www1.nature.nps.gov/edures/

SCHOOLS ONLINE. A website for K–12 educators that features brief text or animated presentations on such topics as planting and tending gardens; incorporating 4–H projects in the classroom; and helping students become more aware of how plants, animals, and humans interact with ecosystems. Some activities are available on CD-ROM and in Spanish. http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/SchoolsOnline/index.html

SCILINKS. SciLinks® is an interactive, web-based service from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) that connects lesson and/or course materials (certain textbooks, NSTA books, and journal articles) with online content chosen just for selected topics. Natural Resource Links http://www.scilinks.org/retrieve_outside.asp?sl=9263569910441033

US EPA INFORMATIONAL WEBSITE. Teachers can find background information, experiments, activities, labs, and lesson plans on any number of topics. Resources include news, laws and regulations, local data, information sources, educational resources, and information in Spanish. Air quality, environmental health, ecosystems, economics, pesticides, toxins, pollution prevention, research, and water quality are just some of the topics! Visit http://www.epa.gov/

PLANTS

AG-IN-THE-CLASSROOM WEBSITE. "Agriculture in the Classroom" is an excellent resource for educators who are interested in teaching students about the role of agriculture in the economy and society. Many schools have incorporated this program into their schoolyard habitat projects because it involves learning about seeds, plants, soil, and other aspects of gardening. Ag-in-the-Classroom is coordinated by the U. S. Department of Agriculture. You can access resources and find out about programs in your state at http://www.agclassroom.org

NATIONAL GARDENING ASSOCIATION WEBSITE. Visit http://www.kidsgardening.com for advice for engaging kids in gardens and habitats. Access a vast number of free resources, including an extensive thematic article library; answers to thousands of gardening questions; a directory of books, Web sites, free materials, and other teaching tools; and grant opportunities. Finally, through the School Garden Registry, you can exchange experiences with other educators nationwide (including those in Montessori settings) who use gardening in school programs to teach kids important lessons about science, the environment, cultures, self-reliance, and more.

SUDDEN OAK DEATH WEBSITE. Sudden Oak Death is a new plant disease killing oal and tanoak trees and adcersely affecting 11 additional plants. The disease is caused by the pathogen Phytophthora ramorum, but was given the name Sudden Oak Death because the trees change rapidly in appearance from green and healthy to looking brown as leaves dry up and die. It has several consequences. Visit http://www.suddenoakdeath.org, sponsored by the California Oak Mortality Task Force.