Trees & Me: Activities for Exploring Nature with Young Children
Coming Soon! A new guide designed especially for families and teachers of kids ages 1-6.
Early Childhood
School Forests Connect Children to Nature
Enriching outdoor classrooms, ready-to-use lessons, and outdoor skill-based trainings in the woods. Learn how the Minnesota DNR’s School Forest Program helps teachers develop and enhance their outdoor instruction.
Tips From PLT’s First Early Childhood Certified GreenSchool
A preschool curriculum director describes her school’s focus on the outdoors and nature and how PLT helped give their teachers and students some structure and new ideas for ways to deepen study.
Preschool in Virginia Earns Recognition as PLT’s First Certified Early Childhood GreenSchool
The Country Day School in McLean, VA, is the first early childhood center in the country to be honored as a certified PLT GreenSchool! Students and teachers embraced outdoor learning, and completed all 5 PLT Early Childhood Investigations and a variety of action projects to make their school more green, a great accomplishment during the pandemic.
21 Tree Art Projects for Young Learners
We’ve gathered a variety of art projects for Preschool through Grade 2 children involving handprints, mosaics, found objects such as sticks and leaves, and repurposed materials such as egg cartons to get students excited and thinking about trees.
From Seeds to Trees—All in Your Pocket
Our Pocket Guide: Seeds to Trees is a great stocking stuffer gift idea for educators, group leaders, parents and grandparents to introduce young children ages 3–6 to nature through trees and forests. At just 4 by 6 inches, it’s small enough to fit into a pocket or backpack. Purchase now in time for the holidays!
22 Holiday Craft Ideas Using Natural Materials
Working with natural materials helps students form deeper connections with the outside world. Try these holiday craft ideas using natural materials.
Spider-Inspired Classroom Activities for Halloween
Are you ready to add some spooky science to your fall lesson plans? We have gathered a whole cauldron of creepy, crawly spider science activities to enhance your lessons. Try these 11 Halloween activities inspired by our eight-legged friends. Examine spider webs outdoors, build a spider habitat, consider how a spider would adapt to life in space, and more!
Growing Plants in Small Spaces With Students of All Ages
You don’t need a schoolyard or backyard garden to observe plants grow—you can do it inside your classroom or kitchen. Growing plants indoors, even in small spaces, is much easier than you may think.
Recommended Children’s Books Featuring BIPOC Protagonists
Looking for some great summer reading choices? Encourage the children you teach to curl up with one of these riveting reads featuring BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of color) protagonists to learn about the natural world.