Project Learning Tree: Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood

Exploring nature is a complete sensory experience, and early experiences with the natural world have been positively linked with the development of children's imaginations and their senses of wonder and curiosity—important motivators for lifelong learning. PLT’s Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood encourages children to explore, discover, and communicate in expressive ways, and provides an introduction to environmental education at a key developmental period in children’s lives.

Developed with preschool educators and early childhood specialists, the guide is designed for educators who work with children ages 3 to 6.  It offers over 130 experiences that engage children in outdoor play and exploration.  Topics include exploring nature with five senses, meeting neighborhood trees, and experiencing trees through the seasons.  An accompanying CD features music from children's musician Billy B. Brennan that encourages children to sing, dance, and move.

The activities include group experiences, such as music and movement, and neighborhood walks; learning centers, such as math and manipulatives and art; reading connections; and family and friends.

To get the guide and CD, attend a PLT Early Childhood workshop near you. Check our Calendar of Events, and contact your PLT State Coordinator for the latest information.

Here's what's inside the module:

• Introduction

• Background Information

• Student Activities - Overviews and additional resources for each activities can be viewed by clicking on the activity titles:
  
  Section 1. Exploring Nature with Five Senses
  1. The Shape of Things
  2. Sounds Around
  3. Get In Touch With Trees
  4. We All Need Trees
  
  Section 2. Experiencing Trees Through the Seasons
  5. Signs of Fall
  6. Evergreens in Winter
  7. Bursting Buds
  8. Adopt a Tree
  
  Section 3. Meeting Neighborhood Trees
  9. To Be a Tree
  10. Trees as Habitats
  11. Three Cheers for Trees

• Appendices:
  
  1. PLT’s Environmental Experiences for Early
     Childhood CD 100
  2. Playing It Safe Outdoors
     Collecting Plants and Animals
  3. Taking Neighborhood Walks
  4. Setting Up an Outdoor Classroom
  5. Encouraging Unstructured Outdoor Play
  6. Bringing Nature into the Classroom
  7. “Greening” Your Classroom
  8. Setting Up a Woodworking Center
  9. Using Technology with Early
     Childhood Learners

• Resources
  
  Reading Connections Book List for PLT's Early Childhood Environmental Experiences 
  
  Materials List for PLT's Early Childhood Environmental Experiences 
  
  More Marginalia to accompany PLT's Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood by John Guyton, 2003 PLT Outstanding Educator
  
  Natural Wonders: A Guide to Early Childhood for Environmental Educators
  This guide is written for naturalists and environmental educators who are interested in learning more about how and why young children think and act. The guidelines this resource provides will help educators implement developmentally appropriate early childhood programs and activities. The Natural Wonders guide does not contain any activities, but it is a concise compendium of early childhood pedagogy. It is free to download, copy, and distribute, and offers a great compliment to PLT Early Childhood workshops.  Get your copy today! 
  
  Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies
  Contact your state’s leading individual or organization for comprehensive child care information resources.
  Find high-quality child care providers in your area using a database hosted by Child Care Aware.

• National Standards Correlations
  
  PLT’s Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood guide has been correlated to national standards for preschool education by three major early childhood accreditation programs:
  - National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
  - North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) Early Childhood Environmental Education Guidelines for Excellence
  - Head Start Child Outcomes Framework