California Regional Environmental Education Community
Teacher Opportunities
Teachers - need a little help? On this page you will find
opportunities to increase your skills in teaching Environmental
Education, as well as some key opportunities for the kids in your
classroom. Check back, as the information changes often. --- Want to
know more about what the CREEC Network can do for you?
Click on "How Educators Can Use the CREEC Network"
NOAA's Teacher at Sea ProgramThe mission of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) Teacher at Sea (TAS) program is to give teachers a clearer insight into our ocean planet, a greater understanding of maritime work and studies, and to increase their level of environmental literacy by fostering an interdisciplinary research experience. The program provides a unique environment for learning and teaching by sending kindergarten through college-level teachers to sea aboard NOAA research and survey ships to work under the tutelage of scientists and crew. Then, armed with new understanding and experience, teachers bring this knowledge back to their classrooms. Applications for the this years Field Season are now closed.
This program aims to provide teachers with resources and training to support ocean literacy in America's classrooms. You will find curriculum, lesson plans, and activities that will excite your students about science and technology.
The US Environmental Protection Agency's public involvement web
pages have been expanded to include new materials and links to useful
information about tools and techniques in use all over the world.
The site also includes a new Feedback section with ready-to-use
surveys. In addition, the Public Involvement Resources and
Training (PIRT) database, previously on EPA's intranet, is now publicly
available for use and also offers the option for users to suggest
additional resources, conferences and trainings.
The help teachers develop classroom curriculum, the California
Department of Water Resources offers water education materials at no
charge. Materials can be ordered by filling out the on-line order
form or printing out the mail-in form provided on the website.
Materials are limited so it is suggested that you review a sample copy
before ordering classroom sets.
The Hooked on Recycling Bottle Cap Project :
Norm Price from Sherbrook, Quebec, CAnada, started this recycling
campaign where students from all over North America collect soda and
beer metal caps from parks, rivers, streams, lakes, and nature
trails. The caps are then passed on to the Original Bottle Cap
Lure Company who hires students to make the caps into fishing
lures. These lures were featured in the April issue of Field
& Stream Fishing Magazine and the Milwaukee Journal. They are
used by Canadian Sport Fishing Champion Andy Vander Ploeg, who won 3
years in a row with the Bottle Cap Lure.
Welcome to Earthquakes For Teachers!
The USGS has a new searchable database called "Learning Links" to help
you find classroom information, activities, and lessons about
earthquakes!
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 navagation
software are recommended for viewing images.
The Electronic Naturalist is an online education program providing a
weekly environmental education unit. Each unit has artwork, text,
activities, additional web sites, plus online access to a professional
naturalist. Two reading levels are available for grades K-3
(Quick Read) and 4-8 (Full Read). The units cover insects, fish,
amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, plants and environmental issues.
A new Middle School Water & Energy Curriculum is available for download in PDF format.
Dedicated to public education on forest health and conservation
issues - The Forest Foundation provides free classroom materials
aligned to California's standards. In addition to activity
booklets and posters, they also can provide interactive presentations,
expert speakers, and forest-related research.
Grade Level: K-12. This resource guide is aligned with
National Science Education Standards. There are 81 lesson plans,
each complete with basic scientific background information, educational
objectives, materials lists, instructions, evaluation and extensions
for further learning. The Web site has served as a guidebook and
primer providing major resources that have been widely used in
classrooms across the nation by both teachers and students.
NSTA is committed to helping teachers of science at all levels to
grow, learn, and connect. This new website was specifically
designed to engage more preservice teachers of science and connect them
with incredible professional development opportunitites.
This is an educational resource of the American Institute of
Biological Sciences, designed to promote bioscience literacy. It
provides articles by scientists, science educators, and science
students on issues related to seven bioscience challenges:
environment, biodiversity, genome, biotechnology, evolution, new
frontiers, and bioscience education. In addition, the website
provides educators with lessons and resources to enhance bioscience
teaching.
Environmental Education Matrix for Fifth Grade STAR Test
This matrix of lessons from seven
outstanding EE curricula that have been evaluated in various EE compendia over the past few years, and correlated to the California
Standards Test Blueprints for Grades 4 and 5. The environment-based
lessons will assist in increasing students' knowledge of earth, life,
and physical science concepts. Project Contacts are: - A Childs Place in
the Environment: Olga Clymire, (707) 263-7249, email olganc@pacific.net
- Adopt-A-Watershed: Kim Stokely, (530) 628-5334, email kim@adopt-a-watershed.org
- Aquatic WILD & Project WILD: Bobbie Winn, (916) 653-6132, email bwinn@dfg.ca.gov
- Closing the Loop: Mindy Fox, (916) 341-6771, email mfox@ciwmb.ca.gov
- Project Learning Tree: Kay Antunez, (916) 653-7958, email kay.antunez@fire.ca.gov
- Project WET: Judy Maben, 916-444-6240, ext. 19, email jmaben@watereducation.org
Intel Corporation and Scholastic Inc.
are offering several million dollars in awards and prize money to
schools that "demonstrate excellence for implementing innovative
programs that support positive educational outcomes." One
elementary-level school and one secondary-level school winner will be
chosen in each of the following ten categories: academic achievement,
literary achievement, mathematics achievement, science achievement,
technology excellence, technology innovation, leadership excellence,
professional development, teamwork (internal) and
collaboration(external). There's also a "Best of the Best" category
that includes an additional $15,000 prize.
The Jiminy Cricket's Environmentality
Challenge is an opportunity for fifth grade classes in the state of
California to learn more about their environment and show it's cool to
care about the earth. Using California Content Standards teachers
encourage students to think and act environmentally at school, at home,
and in their community.
By submitting a project in the Class
Project Competition, your class has a chance to win an all-expense-paid
trip to the Disneyland Resort.
The Energy Kids Page was developed by the
Energy Information Administration, with the cooperation of the National
Energy Education Development Project. It has a new look and
content - new activities and energy sections, plus puzzles, quizzes,
games, new Energy Ant field trips and more! Check it out!
PBS Courses Can Help Teachers
PBS TeacherLine's high quality, standards-based graduate-level courses
offer teachers the professional development opportunities they need in
an accessible online format that makes learning fun, flexible and
collaborative. You can earn graduate credit, PDPs, or CEUs while
gaining strategies and resources to bring directly to your classroom.
The National Geographic Xpeditions Web site hosts the lesson plan,
"Taking Care of Our Oceans." In this lesson, students are asked
to consider why so many people choose to live near the coast and learn
about the impacts of this trend on ocean animals. They will make
posters to educate coastal residents and visitors about human impacts
on marine life.
State Priority Grants are given by the California Department of Education, Office of Environmental Education.
The Environmental Education Program has the primary purpose of
supporting programs and projects which will result in long-term
educational benefits to potentially all California educators and/or
students.
The EPA website links to sites for educators or educational information for adults. This page includes sites that plainly describe
environmental concepts such as ozone or acid rain. See the Office of Water Kids' Page for learning opportunities for kids of all ages. Materials on the site include informational brochures and posters.
Check the website for Spring and Fall Conference dates.
SimForest (for simulated forest) is a
project that enables students, grades 7-12, to plant trees of more than
30 kinds and then choose the environmental factors that affect their
growth, such as rainfall, temperature, and soil conditions. The
software is intended for biology and ecology classes. Teacher and
professional development materials are included. Visit the website for
a complete description of project and download instructions.
The National Wildlife Federation's
Backyard Wildlife Habitat provides resources for students interested in
creating or restoring wildlife habitat on their school grounds. For
other great ideas about school and community projects, check out Kidzone.
The Sierra Club announces new
standards-aligned Science Lesson Plans (K-12) inspired by and using
John Muir's adventures and explorations. Learning about John Muir's
life can serve as a launching pad to science-based environmental
studies through plant and animal habitats, ecosystems, earthquakes,
avalanches, glaciers, geology, weather, biodiversity, and forests.
Teachers may obtain the new Science Lesson Plans free of charge.
Lesson plans and activities for
elementary, junior high, and high school students to explore
alternative energy sources. Can be downloaded in one large file
(Complete Text), individual chapters, or on three compact discs. Dunn Foundation
The Dunn Foundation is dedicated to helping people relearn the value of
community appearance through visual environmental education. The
Foundation believes that an understanding of the visual environment and
the forces that shape it will strengthen the connections young people
have to places and reinforce the civic values vital to healthy
communities. The Dunn Foundation actively identifies and supports K-12
educational programs enhancing young people's understanding of the
visual environment. Application forms and more information are
available on their website. National Gardening Association's Youth Garden Grants Program
The
National Gardening Association works with sponsoring
companies and organizations to provide in-kind grants
to projects that actively engage kids in the garden and
improve the quality of life for their communities.
To be eligible for these awards your school or organization
must plan to garden with at least 15 kids between the
ages of 3 and 18. (Mantis Awards are also open to non-youth
organizations.)
Please note that all grant winners are required to
complete a year-end impact report (see individual grants
for details).
A Field Guide to Environmental Literacy:
Making Strategic Investments in Environmental Education by J. L. Elder.
A real heightening of our nation's environmental literacy will require
momentous educational reforms both inside schools and out. The purpose
of this book is to highlight the need for, and potential benefit of,
foundation seed funding to promote these reforms. A terrific resource
for the library of every funder, administrator, grant writer, Board
member, and teacher.
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