New PLT Activity Collections: A Theme-Based Series for Educators

PLT_COVER_Discover_Your_Urban_Forest_Grades 6-8Project Learning Tree is excited to launch a new series of theme-based activity collections that focus on specific grade levels and topics.

Discover Your Urban Forest is the first collection of activities to be released as part of this new themed series for educators. It features three brand new PLT activities for educators of students in grades 6-8 that invite learners to explore their urban environment and investigate environmental issues that affect their urban community.

 

The activity collection is available for purchase from PLT’s Shop as a downloadable PDF for $5.95.

 

More theme-based activity collections will be coming soon for grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8.

 

The Urban Environment

Most U.S. students and their families are city dwellers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 70 percent of the U.S. population lives and works in urban areas of 50,000 or more people, and the percentage is steadily rising. *1

Many people think that “the environment” refers only to areas that are separate from humans. However, the environment is the sum of all living and nonliving components that affect people and other organisms. It includes both natural habitats and dense cityscapes. The environment influences people, and people both depend on and influence the environment.

The activities in Discover Your Urban Forest encourage learners to investigate environmental issues that affect their urban community. By inspiring youth to learn about the place they live, these activities help students better understand how the world works and what sustains them.

Students will recognize that: *2

  • Nature can be found all around the city. Sometimes all that is needed is an invitation to find it.
  • Survival depends on natural systems. No matter where you live, everyone needs food, water, air, space, and natural resources.
  • Youth are empowered. Whether it is a city sidewalk, an urban forest, or a community park, urban environments provide rich habitat worthy of study and exploration. By learning about where they live, students are empowered to make the world a better place, starting within their own school or community.
  • Getting outdoors has many benefits. Most youth—especially youth in urban communities—spend more time indoors. Getting outdoors has health benefits, helps learners move and think, fosters a sense of community, and engenders hope.
  • Diversity is an asset. Urban environments tend to be more racially and ethnically diverse than rural environments. Project Learning Tree’s activities encourage learners to share and value diverse perspectives as they explore different landscapes.

 

Discover Your Urban Forest: Grades 6-8 Activities

Discover Your Urban Forest features three new PLT activities for educators of students in grades 6-8. Designed to be flexible, the activities can be used as individual, stand-alone lessons, or all together as a cohesive unit of instruction using a storyline technique.

1. Decisions, Decisions

Decisions about community land use are complex and often involve many people in many ways.
Students use trees as a backdrop to develop a land-use plan.

2. Environmental Justice for All

Everyone has an equal right to a healthy environment—but does everyone have a healthy environment?
Students propose actions to resolve various scenarios and then research issues related to environmental justice in their own state.

3. Forest in the City

The trees in our communities provide many benefits: they improve air quality, store carbon, and conserve energy. Trees also enhance human health by reducing blood pressure, decreasing stress, and elevating attentiveness.
Students conduct a survey to investigate the social and psychological effects of the urban forest.

Learning Progressions

Storylines provide connectedness and continuity to individual activities and can serve as the instructional glue that holds areas of knowledge and skills together. The activities in Discover Your Urban Forest may be linked together into a unit of instruction using a storyline technique, such as the one that follows.

Guiding Question: How does the urban forest support our community’s sustainability and resilience?

Storyline: Students explore relationships between the urban forest and the component parts of communities, as well as investigate potential environmental justice issues in their own community.

The sequence of individual activities supports this storyline:

  • Beginning with “Decisions, Decisions” introduce the idea that community members have different perceptions of the value of trees, and different ideas about how community land should be allocated.
  • The community case studies in “Environmental Justice for All” showcase that environmental decisions may have different (and often unknown or unintended) impacts on different groups. Use EJSCREEN to investigate your own state or region for potential environmental justice issues related to trees, the urban forest, or other community parameters.
  • “Forest in the City” challenges students to investigate of the social and psychological effects of trees, using either an example survey provided or one they design. Analyze results from all three activities to recommend actions for making communities more resilient and sustainable.

 

New Features Within Each Activity

In addition to the typical elements that educators have come to rely on from PLT, the following new features in our theme-based series will further help educators adapt the activities for specific groups and settings.

Academic Standards

Classroom educators and nonformal educators alike need to ensure that instruction helps diverse learners meet rigorous academic benchmarks. Each PLT activity displays explicit connections to practices and concepts mandated by the following national academic standards.

Here is an example from “Forest in the City:”

project-learning-tree-academic-standards-chart

Window-opening-to-evergreen-trees

 

Take It Outside!

Describes how to extend student learning into the outdoors.

 

Differentiated Instruction Strategies

grey-arrow-pointing-right

  • Cooperative Learning
  • ELA Skills
  • Hands-On Learning
  • Higher-Order Thinking
  • Multiple Solution Pathways
  • Nonlinguistic Representations
  • Personal Connections
  • Student Voice

question-mark-made-of-leaves

 

Did You Know?

Forest Facts present interesting insights into forests as global solutions for environmental, economic, and social sustainability.

 

text-bubble-with-i-love-my-green-job!-insideCareer Corner

Introduces youth to forest-related careers.

 

 

Purchase Discover Your Urban Forest now from PLT’s Shop for $5.95.

 

 

Resources

[*1] “New Census Data Show Differences Between Urban and Rural Populations.” U.S. Census Bureau. December 8, 2016.

[*2] Urban Environmental Education. Edited by Alex Russ. 2015. Ithaca, NY and Washington, DC: Cornell University Civic Ecology Lab, NAAEE and EECapacity.

PLT Staff Recognized for Making a Difference Through Environmental Education

We are thrilled to announce that our very own Rachel Lang has been recognized as part of the North American Association for Environmental Education’s (NAAEE) EE 30 Under 30 Class of 2020! As PLT’s Manager of Education Products, Rachel is integral to the award-winning success of our environmental education materials and outreach, and the passion and innovation she brings to her work is reflected in this recent accolade from NAAEE.

Since 2016, NAAEE’s EE 30 Under 30 program has recognized 150 individuals from around the world who are making a difference through environmental education. To address today’s complex challenges, a diversity of perspectives, skills, and experiences are needed. EE 30 Under 30 celebrates the unique and passionate leadership of the young people changing the world through environmental education.

We are honored to count one of PLT’s national staff amongst such an impressive cohort of global leaders! We are proud of Rachel’s commitment to social and environmental justice and the critical lens with which she approaches her work, including creating inclusive and intersectional educational products to help educators be more equitable and effective.

 

NAAEE’s Q&A with Rachel Lang

photo-of-rachel-lang

Rachel Lang
Manager of Education Products, Project Learning Tree
Arlington, VA, United States
Age: 29

Rachel is a social and environmental justice advocate supporting educators to inspire the next generation of sustainability leaders.  

 

 

How are you using education to build more sustainable and equitable communities? 

I’m dedicated to inspiring the next generation of sustainability and environmental leaders by supporting educators with curriculum resources and professional development. As the Manager for Education Products for Project Learning Tree (PLT), I bring expertise in social and environmental justice to support the development of curriculum, which reaches 15,000 educators annually.

 

I strongly believe that for us to be effective educators, both the materials we use and our approach must be inclusive and intersectional. I also take this approach working in my community in Arlington, Virginia, as a member of the Superintendent’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (SACS). I offer EE expertise to SACS, contributing to the development of annual guidelines and deliverables to support educators seeking to add EE to their lesson planning. I also reach educators through professional development at national tradeshows and teacher conferences, including leading educator trainings about best practices for equity and inclusion.  

 

 

 

rachel-lang-presents-PLT

Tell us about your journey to where you are today. 

A pivotal moment leading me to EE occurred when I was working as a violence prevention educator for a family justice and domestic violence center – a field of work that at the time felt vastly different than EE. I worked mostly with teens and children impacted by family violence. The experiences they shared revealed that cycles of family violence are compounded by other issues such as economic agency, food access, and proximity to healthy (or unhealthy) natural environments.

 

This was my ‘aha’ moment – realizing that creating a socially just and violence-free community was deeply tied to the principles of sustainability. I sought to learn more about this intersection and pursued my Master’s degree in conflict analysis and resolution. Thus, my career in EE began. Working in the EE field has allowed me to ignite an interdisciplinary approach to global issues of the environment, social justice, and conflict to inspire the next generation through EE.

 

 

 

rachel-lang-measures-a-tree

What advice would you give to the next generation of leaders?

Keep going – you have an impact! What I admire about young leaders is their relentless and unwavering commitment to making the world more sustainable, equitable, and intersectional. I want them to know that they are doing all the right things and not to give up. Community advocacy is a challenging and long-term commitment. I encourage young leaders to celebrate the small victories and keep sights on the big picture.

I also want to challenge young leaders to listen to the most vulnerable and underrepresented voices and learn from them about the impacts of injustice and climate change. As a leader, it is important to know when you should speak up and when you should listen. Don’t turn away from opportunities to learn from others. Challenge yourself to have honest conversations about how we may disrupt or hold up systems of privilege, power, and oppression in our work. Keep doing the work and grow!

 

 

 

What keeps you motivated, inspired, and/or hopeful for the future?

I am continually inspired by the amazing educators and young leaders working to make EE a more equitable field. At PLT and in my community, I am surrounded by educators and changemakers who share a vision for an equitable future that includes social, racial, and environmental justice and calls for an end to systemic and direct violence and oppression. I value their experiences and appreciate their willingness to hold me accountable. I am motivated daily by their commitment and creative solutions.

 

photo-of-rachel-lang-presenting-PLTs-itree

 

 

Describe your work in a haiku.

Have courage to grow
Value voices on the ground
Perspective guides me

 

 

 

Hear Rachel Speak at NAAEE’s 2020 Virtual Conference

Rachel will be making several presentations at NAAEE’s 2020 Virtual Conference, to be held this October 13-16, including:

  • Using PLT To Teach about Environmental Justice and Health Equity — Roundtable Discussion
  • Growing Future Forest and Conservation Leaders with Green Jobs — Hands-on Presentation
  • Inspiring the Next Generation of Green Professionals — Bright Spot, 30 Under 30 Cohort

Learn more about the NAAEE Conference, the speakers and sessions, and register to attend.

 

 

The Q&A with Rachel Lang is reprinted with permission from the North American Association for Environmental Education; view the original here and watch this NAAEE video clip (1:24): We asked our EE 30 Under 30, “What Does a Sustainable and Equitable Future Mean to You?”

PLT Workshops During COVID-19: Benefits Now, Benefits for the Future

The start of the 2020-2021 school year is like no other. Educators, administrators, and parents are figuring out how to provide some combination of virtual and in-person learning experiences for students. To further complicate the plans, what happens this fall may change completely as the year progresses.

We at PLT, like all of you, had to pivot quickly to this new reality last March. Typically, approximately 15,000 educators attend 800 in-person PLT professional development events organized by PLT state programs around the country. Now most PLT state programs are offering professional development that combines safe, flexible online learning with the personal experience that has been the hallmark of PLT for decades.

If you have never taken a PLT workshop or haven’t attended one in a while, this might be a great time to dig in! You’ll experience PLT activities in the virtual environment that you can then adapt to your teaching for the coming year. You will find that PLT can be a great addition to a variety of subjects, and in a variety of settings!

 

PLT can help you make the most of many challenges arising from the global pandemic. For example:

  • The challenge: Students are each in their own home, rather than together in a classroom.
    The opportunity: PLT activities offers a way for students to make the most of their different spaces, through activities such as comparing and contrasting their different environments.

 

  • The challenge: Students are spending many hours in front of computers.
    The opportunity: PLT offers a way to incorporate outdoors experiences and to learn and practice 21st digital skills as part of STEM preparation, through such activities as analyzing and visualizing data.

 

  • The challenge: For schools holding in-person learning, CDC guidelines suggest using outdoor spaces as a way to facilitate social distancing.
    The opportunity: PLT offers a way to structure outdoor learning across the curriculum and make the schoolyard a classroom.

 

Leveraging the Virtual Environment

Over the past few years, PLT developed six online workshops for early childhood, elementary, and middle school educators. These self-guided online courses were originally designed as stand-alone professional development. They are asynchronous training, wherein participants go through the series of short segments that make up an online course on their own schedule and pace. For those unable to attend an in-person workshop, online PLT professional development has been a great option since we introduced it, after rigorous testing, in 2015. However, some participants miss out on some of the advantages of synchronous, in-person professional development: that is, the community-building and social learning that results from interacting in real-time with facilitators and fellow participants.

PLT state programs are now offering a new modality of remote professional development—customized professional development that is both synchronous and asynchronous—blending the social learning that happens in live events with the flexibility offered by self-guided online courses.

 

Together Apart

Is there a better way to learn how to teach remotely than to experience it for yourself? PLT now offers remote professional development to model new ways educators can work with students virtually, including adaptations to PLT activities.

As Laura Downey, the Kansas PLT coordinator who also has a doctorate in curriculum and instruction, notes, “The initial intent in the spring was just to provide professional development in a way that was engaging and allowed for some interaction. We have been figuring out ways for people to feel they are part of a learning community, the hallmark and trademark of PLT. An added benefit is that our workshops can serve as a model to educators about how to teach high-quality environmental education to students virtually. PLT offers something so much more engaging for students than just watching something on a screen and then writing something down.”

In addition to Laura, several other state PLT coordinators recently shared new ways they are supporting educators virtually. They have created variations of PLT professional development in which participants meet live as a cohort via Zoom or other video conferencing platform, complete the online course on their own within a few weeks, then reconnect. They have found that participants value both the chance to connect with others and the flexibility of being able to do much of the training on their own schedules and not having to travel to attend a workshop. As Laura reminded me, “Who doesn’t need flexibility these days?”

 

A few different flavors:

  • 3 live sessions + self-guided professional development + outdoor activities. Colorado PLT holds three 2-hour Zoom sessions, coordinator Danielle Ardrey explained, with the self-guided online professional development between the sessions. One advantage of these periodic contacts, she said, is that participants have the time to experience some PLT activities together during the Zoom sessions, using the chat and small group breakouts. On their own, they do several outside PLT nature activities and come together to discuss how they can use them with their students. The format has also allowed for the inclusion of guest speakers who recount how PLT has affected their own environmental career paths.

 

  • 1 live session + self-guided professional development + online resources. South Carolina PLT had six professional development events scheduled for pre-service teachers when things shut down in March. By May, after some experimentation, they developed a new virtual model that incorporated video conferencing. According to coordinator Matt Schnabel, participants receive an introductory email to cover the administrative and technical details, as well as a heads-up about an icebreaker that will be conducted during the live session. That live, synchronous session introduces participants to the PLT program, two activities, online resources, and gets everyone on the same page about how they may use PLT in their teaching, Matt said. Participants are then given access to the online course, with about two weeks to go through it. At the end, in addition to a certificate and continuing education credit, they receive a letter with instructions on how to access the PLT curriculum electronically, how to stay connected to their local PLT network, and suggestions for other EE resources and organizations in South Carolina.

K-8-environmental-education-online-course-screenshot

 

  • 2 live sessions + self-guided professional development + lesson planning. In between Colorado’s three live sessions and South Carolina’s one, Virginia PLT has developed a model with two such sessions. Virginia PLT coordinator Page Hutchinson had also not done any virtual training beforehand, but quickly adapted. In addition to completing the online course, Page has participants find two or more additional activities that support their curriculum. Because Virginia has its own science standards, she has them complete Index 7, the Lesson Planning Worksheet found in PLT’s PreK-8 Environmental Education Activity Guide, making sure to correlate the activities to the Virginia Standards of Learning. Participants go into breakout groups by grade level to share and discuss the activities they’ve found, which Page said has proven very useful.

 

As a guiding principle for planning online teaching, Laura said, “When you use technology, it shouldn’t just be to replicate something that you can do face to face. It should take advantage of the technology and use the technology to enhance learning.” An example that she is incorporating into workshops in Kansas involves asking participants to download a magnifying microscope app on their phones. They go outdoors to study a piece of their own environment in a whole new way, take photographs, and reflect on what they have seen.

 

Looking Ahead

If there is a silver lining to the pandemic, it may be that we all have been pushed beyond our comfort zones and have learned new ways to do things, oftentimes with positive results.

Some state coordinators are planning to continue aspects of their pandemic-related changes even when in-person professional development events are safe again. Virtual training can help meet the needs of those who can’t attend in-person events—educators who live in more remote areas or whose schedules preclude attending evening or weekend workshops, for example. In addition, this remote professional development format can also support participants in developing a whole new set of skills, such as remote teaching. It also creates opportunities for more professional development, helping educators continually improve their teaching practices and consequentially, student achievement.

If you decide to participate in an upcoming blended professional development event that combines live sessions and self-guided courses, our Project Learning Tree coordinators offer these suggestions:

  1. Get the details out of the way first. If you are unfamiliar with the online platform (whether Zoom, WebEx, or others), ask for help beforehand so you are ready to roll. You can also take a quick look at the PLT website if you are unfamiliar with it to get an overview of its resources.
  2. Come with an open mind. PLT’s hands-on, participatory workshops are never typical professional development experiences, and these virtual sessions are not even typical for PLT. But given the completion rates and feedback to date, they are a great option.
  3. Evaluate the experience. This is a work in progress and your feedback about what worked and what didn’t will ensure a better PLT experience for all.

 

Find out what your state has planned, connect with your local coordinator for tips and upcoming opportunities, and best of luck as the school year begins!

Provide Input on United Nations Assessment of Forest-Related Education

Project Learning Tree is supporting a Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) initiative to gather input via a survey that will inform a global assessment of forest-related education. The information gathered is intended to build the case for renewed investment in forest education globally.  

Project Learning Tree is a leading partner for North American engagement around this survey. Our support of this initiative aligns with PLT’s goal to advance environmental literacy, stewardship, and career pathways using trees and forests as windows on the world. It also aligns with our commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 4, Quality Education.

About the Survey

The survey will take 15-30 minutes. It seeks input from individuals at all formal levels of education (from K-12 schools to colleges and universities) who are knowledgeable about or involved in education related to forests and trees, or who hire recent graduates from forest-related programs.

For example, if you teach at the elementary level, the survey will ask you, among other questions:

  • to what extent are forest-related topics included in your curriculum?
  • to what extent certain topics (such as plants and animals that live in or around forests) or skills (such as observing the environment) are included in your curriculum?
  • are forests used as a teaching environment or classroom?
  • what resources are available to you?

The FAO understands that the recent COVID-19 outbreak may be influencing your involvement in forest education and prefers that you respond to the survey questions based on your pre-COVID experience.

The survey is available at https://webropol.com/s/Forest-Education-Survey-1. Your responses will be invaluable in FAO’s efforts to chart a path forward for forest education and to shape a new international initiative to reinforce it. Responses to the survey will be treated anonymously.

About the Organizers

The survey is being undertaken by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), and the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) and funded by the Government of Germany. The North American (Canada and the U.S.) effort is being overseen by the Faculty of Forestry at the University of British Columbia in partnership with the College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science at Michigan Technological University and Project Learning Tree (PLT)—an initiative of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).

Prize Drawing

If you wish to be entered into a lottery for a fully funded prize to participate in the International Conference on Forest Education to be held at FAO Headquarters in Rome (tentatively scheduled for November 2020), click here to participate in the lottery.

Online Green Jobs Personality Quiz Helps Students Chart Their Future

Young Woman Overlooking Forests

Giving your students a chance to answer a few simple questions could put them on the path to a rewarding green career. In just minutes, Project Learning Tree’s interactive Find Your Green Job online personality quiz produces a personalized report with six job options.

Green jobs represent one of the fastest-growing and changing segments of the global economy. At the same time, today’s youth are seeking rewarding careers that will help the world move toward more sustainable lifestyles and greener economies. Some of the most exciting—and perhaps greenest—jobs involve forests.

There are 36 green jobs options currently profiled in PLT’s Find Your Green Job youth personality quiz. Additional resources to support the quiz include Career Facts, a STEM skills self-assessment, and more.

 

Take advantage of a one-time free trial 

Educators can try a no-cost version of the green jobs quiz to find out how easy it is to administer this quiz to youth. After completing the free trial, educators receive their quiz results by email along with information about purchasing access codes. 

 

 

For just 10 cents per student, open a whole new world of career and educational possibilities

Educators can buy 30 student quiz access codes for just $2.99 from Shop.PLT.org. Each student will enter their unique access code at www.plt.org/mygreenjob to complete the online quiz. Based on the characteristics each student selects, the results will specify the student’s personality type and suggest some ideal green jobs. Each student will see their results displayed on screen. 

 

PLT Green Jobs Qiuz Results

 

Young Forestry Professionals Outdoors

Building rapport with students

Educators can log in to their account to access each student’s results and download PDFs for each students. See an example. These personalized career reports are a great way to start a conversation that engages students about their future.

 

Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers

The companion guide Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers helps youth discover careers in sustainable forestry and conservation. Anyone can use this resource with youth aged 12–25 in settings ranging from community youth programs and school classrooms, to college and career prep, to field trips and forest tours.

 

get the guide button

 

Now more than ever, we have to be hopeful for the future

In today’s challenging times, it’s important to inspire young people to consider career plans that involve caring for the planet. In the wake of COVID-19 and the climate crisis, more and more people are beginning to understand the importance of a more resilient and lower-carbon society. The quiz and supporting materials give students a sense of purpose and a hopeful view of a future that includes a rewarding career.

 

Green jobs offer opportunities for people with diverse backgrounds, skills, interest areas, and personal qualities

There are 36 green jobs profiled in PLT’s Find Your Green Job online quiz. They include:

  • Arborist
  • Architect
  • Environmental Educator
  • Forester
  • Forest Engineer
  • Logger
  • Lumber Mill Worker
  • Park Ranger
  • Policy Advisor
  • Social Media Director
  • Soil Scientist
  • Sustainability Manager
  • Wildland Firefighter
  • Wildlife Biologist

    find-your-green-job-youth-personality-quiz

PLT GreenSchools Honored as 2020 Green Ribbon Schools

Project Learning Tree is thrilled that 18 registered PLT GreenSchools have been recognized this year as part of the U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools (ED-GRS) program. They are among the 39 schools, 11 school districts, and 5 postsecondary institutions that have been recently awarded for their innovative efforts to:

  1. reduce environmental impact and utility costs
  2. improve health and wellness
  3. ensure effective environmental and sustainability education

 

California  — Anderson W. Clark Magnet High School, La Crescenta

Florida — Hobe Sound Elementary, Port Salerno Elementary, and Dr. David L. Anderson Middle with Martin County School District, Stuart

Hawaii — SEEQS: The School for Examining Essential Questions of Sustainability, Honolulu

Indiana — Fishers Elementary and Riverside Intermediate with Hamilton Southeastern School Corporation, Fishers

Kentucky — Redwood Cooperative School, Lexington; Locust Trace AgriScience Center with Fayette County Public Schools, Lexington

Maine — Camden Hills Regional High School, Rockport

Minnesota — School of Engineering and Arts, Golden Valley

New Jersey — Readington Middle School, Whitehouse Station

North Carolina — Millbrook Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary School, Raleigh

South Carolina — Cape Romain Environmental Education Charter School, McClellanville

Utah — Bonneville Elementary School, Salt Lake City; Wasatch Academy, Mount Pleasant

Washington — Grover Cleveland STEM High School and Northgate Elementary School with Seattle Public Schools, Seattle

 

Congratulations to these awardees and to all the schools, school districts and postsecondary institutions who have been honored with the U.S. Department of Education’s Green Ribbon Schools recognition award award this year. ED-GRS is part of the U.S. Department of Education’s effort to identify and communicate practices that result in improved student engagement, academic achievement, graduation rates, and workforce preparedness.

 

Two PLT Highlights

Here are some highlights from the nomination packets of two registered PLT GreenSchools recognized this year as a U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School:

 

School of Engineering and Arts, Minnesota

Recipient of a 2018 National Blue Ribbon Award, the School of Engineering and Arts (SEA), located in Golden Valley, MN is no stranger to US Department of Education accolades. Originally built in 1970 with an open school concept, SEA was named after Minnesota environmentalist, Sigurd Olson, as an environmentally focused school. Their Fuel Up to Play leadership group of 60 students advocates for in-school health and wellness activities like the daily morning “Jammin’ Minutes” program, which caught the attention of the Minnesota Vikings and earned them $15,000 in grants to produce more creative videos promoting healthy eating and the importance of drinking milk.

Student from the School of Engineering and Arts biomonitors a local river
Twice a year, fourth-graders from the School of Engineering and Arts biomonitor a local creek in partnership with the Hennepin County RiverWatch Program

Energy

  • Approximately 95% of SEA’s population either walks, bikes, buses, or carpools to and from school each day.
  • SEA utilizes SkySpark Analytics to benchmark utility consumption, including electric and gas. This is compiled into daily and annual trend data, which is continuously improved each year.

Water

  • SEA does not use irrigation on the grounds, instead focusing on maintaining native habitat to balance soil biology.
  • There are low flow faucets on all sinks, all flushing devices are automated, and there are currently two bottle filling water fountain stations on site.

Waste & Recycling

  • 56% of SEA’s solid waste is diverted from landfilling or incinerating due to reduction, recycling and/or organics diversion.
  • The school is currently seeking funding to start district-wide composting.
  • 30% of paper used within the school’s office is post-consumer material or fiber from certified sourcing with the sustainable forestry initiative.
  • Cafeteria food service waste of fruits and vegetables is fed to onsite animals (chickens, reptiles, etc.)

Environmental Quality

  • Each of SEA’s classroom have at least two large windows, so most teachers do not turn on the fluorescent lights, due to adequate natural lighting.

School Site

  • Since occupancy in 2012, SEA has been working to re-establish native plants, orchards, and gardens.
  • A recycling and composting program has been in practice for the last eight years.
  • Junior Naturalist student leaders monitor and educate the school community energy use, proper recycling, and care of the school’s yard, gardens, and chickens.
  • Approximately 18% of SEA’s school yard is devoted to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resource’s School Forest program, where students not only learn core content, but also sustainable forest management practices as they work alongside Minnesota DNR Foresters and Minnesota Conservation Corps members.
  • SEA’s school site has more native and natural green space than typical of a public elementary school with approximately 75% of the school grounds devoted to ecologically beneficial use.
  • SEA’s school grounds feature a number of opportunities for outdoor learning, including:
    • Chickadee Landing (a designated bird observation area where students feed birds in the winter months)
    • 7 acre School Forest
    • 800 ft. of Native Prairie Patch (students collect seeds in the fall and grow seedlings in the greenhouse to be transferred to school grounds in the spring)
    • Native Butterfly Garden
    • 60 ft. Chicken Coop and Run (students take care of the chickens with daily feedings and watering, monitoring health, and collecting eggs)
    • Pumpkin Patch and Sunflower Garden
    • Kindergartener’s Tulip Beds
    • 30-tree Fruit Orchard
    • Raised Vegetable Garden Beds
    • 10’x16’ Greenhouse
    • Bluebird Houses (located around campus and managed by both students and staff to observe bird life cycles)

Read more, and check out a local profile of the School of Engineering and Arts, to learn how SEA is virtually celebrating amid COVID-19 pandemic self-quarantines, “Because,” as Principal Heather Hanson says, “in the midst of the dark cloud, this is a real ray of sunshine for us. It’s something to be celebrated and be proud of.”

 

Millbrook Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary School, North Carolina

Millbrook Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary aims to develop environmentally-minded citizens who will change the world. Students are immersed in nature-based learning, including on-site rain, pollinator, and edible gardens installed on campus. School grounds are certified as Wildlife Habitat and they have significantly reduced the use of pesticides around campus. The student-led Green Bees Team implemented a school-wide recycling and food waste diversion program and feature bi-annual waste audits.

Here are some more highlights:

Kindergarten students release butterflies
Kindergarteners take part in a butterfly release during their Environmental Inquiry class at Millbrook Environmental Connections Magnet Elementary School

Energy

  • Millbrook’s Green Bees and faculty Eco-Action Team members are working to reduce the school’s carbon footprint through energy conservation lessons, whereby children will design an action plan to reduce energy consumption.

Water

  • The school’s outdoor learning spaces feature native plants and are designed for North Carolina’s climate to be water efficient. A rain garden helps reduce stormwater runoff across campus, reducing flooding and curbing erosion.

Waste & Recycling

  • Students collect and deposit recycling waste once a week and the school offers a composting program in the cafeteria, where students compost food scraps, which is used (in part) to feed the campus gardens, and then the excess is taken to a composting facility.
  • The school participates in a paper reusing program

Environmental Quality

  • 5th-grade students annually complete a Problem Based Learning (PBL) unit focused on improving the school’s air quality. NC Department of Environmental Quality representatives present at the school and ask students to use their research to create public service announcements, brochures, and posters to present to parents and other community members to educate them on the air quality.

School Site

  • In 2005, a 0.375-acre watershed was constructed. This wetland drains 14 acres of the 16-acre site, reducing the annual Neuse River nitrogen load 85% below the existing school site.
  • Students maintain Millbrook’s on-site food garden with the help of the Raleigh InterFaith Food Shuttle. InterFaith Food Shuttle has placed a Food Corps volunteer at the school, and the volunteer is on campus two full days per week, co-teaching garden curriculum, maintaining garden space with student help, and monitoring the cafeteria and composting.
  • Students participate in yoga and meditation classes throughout the year. The students are led through mindfulness activities and yoga routines, by a teacher trained in trauma-informed outreach, to promote students’ mental and physical health.

Millbrook prides itself on being a comprehensive, nature-immersive school with daily instruction delivered through the lens of Environmental Science and Sustainability education. All licensed staff received training from Project Learning Tree. Read more.

 

Learn more about PLT’s GreenSchools program and discover how PLT’s GreenSchools Investigations connect with ED-GRS’s three Pillars that the U.S. Department of Education uses to define a green school.

50% off PLT online trainings with e-curriculum

All of us at Project Learning Tree want to say first and foremost that we hope you and your families are safe and well.

We recognize these are challenging times for all, including teachers, parents, and students. We are here to help as much as we can.

Previously we shared our free Activities to Do with Children At Home. Now, with the 50th anniversary of Earth Day taking place this month, we are supporting educators in their transition to remote instruction by offering 50% off our online materials.

Also, be sure to check out the smartphone videos highlighted below that our PLT community is creating. They demo for you some favorite PLT activities from our curriculum that your students can easily do at home. Or, share with your students’ parents for ideas of activities they can do together!

 

E-Curriculum + Self-Paced Online Training for Educators

PLT currently has six online trainings with e-curriculum for educators to teach youth about the natural world and sustainability. Our curriculum, included with each online workshop, is designed for adults (teachers and other educators) to access and use for their lesson planning.

The prices below reflect a 50% discount, available through the month of April.

To purchase, go to shop.plt.org and enter code EARTHDAY50 at checkout. This 50% off code will expire on April 30, 2020.

 

Helpful Features

  • Each of our online workshops are self-paced courses composed of several 20-30 minute learning experiences, called “coursels.” They are designed to help educators integrate PLT’s environmental education materials into their instruction.
  • Our curriculum, included with each online workshop, is designed for teachers and other educators to access.
  • Our e-books are downloadable PDFs; our e-units are all online.
  • Each curriculum includes lots of activities and lesson plans, many of which provide ideas for students to get outdoors for some learning—even if it’s just outside their front door.
  • Our activities include downloadable Student Worksheets.
  • Educators can load these Student Worksheets as “assignments” within Google Classroom. The “Technical Support” index for each of our e-units, for example, provides instructions for how students can complete their assignments within the Google Classroom platform.

 

Supporting Videos

Project Learning Tree has a vast network of State Coordinators and Facilitators in every state. In a normal year, they organize hundreds of in-person PLT professional development workshops for thousands of educators across the country. Of course, most of these events in the coming months have been cancelled or postponed.

But our community is strong, creative, and compassionate.

Many PLT Coordinators and Facilitators are moving their events to virtual learning experiences. And they are creating videos that support PLT activities and connect people with the outdoors. These videos are not slick productions, our Coordinators are just using their smartphones to create these videos as they can to help parents and teachers in this time of need.

More videos are being added each week. You can see what we have in a new “PLT Videos” YouTube account we created to house these.

We encourage you to reach out to your PLT Coordinator in your state for more information about what they can offer. They are compiling and creating online resources to support teachers and local communities in their state. However, please recognize that some states may be better equipped to respond promptly at this time than others, and if we at the National office can help instead, we will.

Remember, we’re all in this together. Stay safe!

PLT Takes Root in Chile

Project Learning Tree is now in Chile, thanks to a new licensing agreement with Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI). PLT is an initiative of SFI. The program officially launched the week of January 13th with a series of PLT workshops held in Santiago, attended by a total of 54 participants.

Educators in front of a finger painting of trees
Educators and an activity from the first PLT Early Childhood Workshop in Chile


Under the SFI/PLT licensing agreement, Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson, based in Santiago, will train educators and families to use PLT activities to teach Chilean youth about their relationship to the environment. Through PLT, the Foundation hopes to encourage behavioral changes in individuals and improve health and sustainable development in Chile.

“Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson is interested in programs that generate social, environmental and economic value, and which demonstrate innovation, replicability and the ability to reach a considerable number of beneficiaries,” says Antonia Ibáñez Atkinson, Environment Manager with Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson. “We researched several programs and chose PLT as our partner for expanding our operations in the realm of sustainability and care for the environment.”

The Foundation plans to develop a scalable PLT program to reach Chilean youth through grade-specific curriculum and educator professional development. PLT activities will be adapted to the local environment and translated into Spanish.

“Fundación Ibáñez Atkinson has a successful track record of implementing teacher training programs in different program areas, and we are thrilled to work with them to grow PLT internationally,” said Melina Bellows, Chief Education Officer for Project Learning Tree at the Sustainable Forestry Initiative. 

A series of multi-day PLT workshops for PreK-8 and Early Childhood educators took place January 13-17, 2020, hosted at the International School Nido de Águilas in Santiago. Mexico PLT Coordinator, Cecilia Ochoa, and Rafael Salgado, former co-chair of PLT’s Education Operating Committee and Executive Director of Cal-Wood in Colorado, traveled to Chile to facilitate and model these initial PLT trainings.

A total of 54 individuals attended the trainings, including teachers and representatives from the Education department of the Chilean Ministry of Environment. Eight people were also trained as PLT facilitators and will be responsible for hosting future workshops in the country.

Newly-certified Chilean PLT Workshop Facilitators
Newly-certified Chilean PLT Workshop Facilitators 


“Cecilia and Rafael were wonderful, and the teachers in Chile were very excited about the program. They are eager to take PLT to their classroom,” said Antonia Ibáñez Atkinson. “The facilitators’ training was incredible too! I think we have a very good group of facilitators to grow the program in Chile.”

“At last, a program that allows students to incorporate curriculum learning in a multidisciplinary way with an emphasis on the importance of trees and our natural environment,” said Nicola Holtung, a teacher at Villa Maria Academy, who attended the PreK-8 workshop and also became certified as a PLT facilitator. “The activities are adaptable to all subject matter and emphasize student-centered learning. As a teacher, it’s incredible to see my learners grow not only academically, but also become more conscious about the important role that nature plays in their lives and vice versa.”

Teaching About Climate Change

Forests and ClimateClimate change may be the single biggest challenge that faces our planet today, and it can be difficult to approach this topic anywhere, let alone in a classroom setting.

There are social and political challenges to navigate. Not everyone agrees about the causes, the scope, the effects, or the solutions. Science teachers are either hesitant to introduce this complex topic, or they feel unsure about the underlying science themselves. It can also be challenging to navigate and incorporate the related academic standards into a cohesive storyline or scaffolded curriculum.

Fortunately, you don’t have to figure out how to approach this controversial topic on your own. PLT has several resources for teachers to help middle and high school students develop the knowledge and skills needed to become informed and active participants in society’s climate change discussions.

These PLT resources explore both the scientific and the social aspects of climate change. Each lesson is designed to stand alone, however, the more lessons students complete, the better they will understand the many aspects of a changing climate.

 

Grades 6 – 8

Cover_PLT_eUnit_Carbon_ClimatePLT’s award-winning Carbon & Climate e-unit explores how climate affects living systems, the role carbon plays in climate, and what we can learn from past changes in the global climate. Unbiased and grounded in scientific facts, this unit helps students learn how to think, not what to think, about this complex issue.  Three of the unit’s activities are described below, and you can learn more from our Carbon & Climate Overview.

Activity 2The Carbon Cycle
Students model the movement of carbon atoms in the carbon cycle and explore the relationship between atmospheric carbon and plants.

Activity 3Is It Only Natural?
Students explore factors that have caused climate change in the past, analyze carbon dioxide levels over time, and construct a claim, supported by evidence and reasoning.

Activity 5Are You A Big Foot?
Students use a carbon footprint calculator to analyze their personal contribution to carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and design a solution for reducing their carbon footprint.

The Carbon & Climate curriculum can be purchased for $24.99 from shop.plt.org.

 

Grades 9 – 12

Cover for PLT online curriculum unitPLT’s Southeastern Forests and Climate Change module contains 14 activities that focus on the interactions between climate and forests and the ways forest management can help adapt to and mitigate future change. Below are descriptions of four of the module’s 14 lessons:

Activity 2 – Clearing the Air
Students learn about the scientific evidence supporting climate change, use this information to evaluate various perspectives people have about climate change, and participate in a role-play to negotiate solutions.

Activity 5 – Managing Forests for Change
Students explore the connection between forests, climate change impacts and management strategies for creating resilient forests. Students draw these connections in a system diagram, a tool that helps them see the system.

Activity 8 – Counting Carbon
Students measure trees near their school and calculate the amount of carbon stored in individual trees. Students compare the carbon sequestration potential for land-use types in their state, compare this to the amount of carbon released by human activities, and then discuss forests’ ability to sequester atmospheric carbon.

Activity 9 – The Real Cost
Through a simulated shopping activity, students learn about life cycle assessments and the potential impact of their consumer choices on the environment. They explore questions such as: What factors do we use to make decisions about the products we buy? What are the hidden environmental costs of everyday items? Who should pay for these hidden costs?

This entire resource is available for free from PLT’s Shop.

Each of the 14 activities is accompanied by its own webpage, full of supporting details and additional resources. Each webpage includes a Teacher Tools section with a “tour” or overview of the activity, short videos to explain challenging concepts or current research, slide presentations, a check your knowledge “quiz,” and answer keys. While some activities are relevant nationwide, others can be easily adapted for your local landscape. Our website offers ideas and scenarios to successfully conduct such adaptations.

 

Teaching About Climate Change

Climate change has received much attention, and it remains a topic that invites much controversy. While debates continue, more and more scientists agree that our changing climate does have consequences for the earth and human activity.

Teaching about our global climate circumstance is a challenging and delicate task. For starters, being too alarmist can lead others to ignore or deny warnings—or worse, lead to feelings of hopelessness and futility. Additionally, some climate change effects, such as melting ice caps or rising sea levels, may not be observable or relatable for many.

But teaching about climate change can be rewarding, for sure. It engages all of us in understanding science, using math, applying technology, and integrating economics and justice—all while considering how we can approach the challenges of our shared future.

 

Looking for supplementary resources to support these lessons? Check out these 12 videos to help introduce the complex science of climate change to your middle and high school students and this PLT article What is Causing Changes in our Climate?

New PLT Curriculum Introduces Youth to Green Careers

Do your students want to find a job they can be proud of? To feel like they are making a difference in the world? Green jobs are not just in the renewable energy, manufacturing, or technology sectors. Some of the greenest jobs involve forests and Project Learning Tree has a new resource for helping youth ages 12-25 explore green careers in forestry and conservation.

PLT’s new Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers unit introduces youth to the array of career options in this field. Designed for adults working with youth, the activities can be used indoors or outdoors, in settings ranging from school classrooms to community youth programs, field tours, and college and career prep programs.

 

 

 

Pathways to Green Careers

Green jobs represent one of the fastest growing and changing segments of the global economy. According to the International Labour Organization, there were 9.8 million green jobs in 2017 and by 2030, there will be an additional 15-60 million new green jobs. 

Moreover, today’s youth are seeking rewarding careers that help us move toward more sustainable lifestyles and greener economies.

Some of the most exciting–and perhaps greenest jobs–benefit forests and ensure that the forest products we depend on are sustainable.

Youth and adults alike might be surprised at the wide array of job openings related to forests—indoors and outdoors—that offer opportunities for people with diverse backgrounds, skills, interest areas, and personal qualities. Some of the jobs profiled in PLT’s Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers unit include:

  • Arborist
  • Architect
  • Environmental Educator
  • Forester
  • Forest Engineer
  • Logger
  • Lumber Mill Worker
  • Park Ranger
  • Policy Advisor
  • Social Media Director
  • Soil Scientist
  • Sustainability Manager
  • Wildland Firefighter
  • Wildlife Biologist

 

Activities for Youth

PLT’s new Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers unit includes four hands-on instructional activities for youth to research forest jobs and practice managing forests. The activities can be used as individual, stand-alone lessons, or all together as a cohesive unit of instruction. They include connections to science, math, English language arts, and social studies standards. 

 

  1. Who Works in This Forest?—As an introduction to some of the people who work in and on behalf of forests, learners research different forest sector careers to learn what it takes to perform these jobs.
  2. If You Were the Boss—Acting as foresters, learners grapple with decisions about how to manage a forest sustainably while serving different needs.
  3. Monitoring Forest Health—Through a variety of health indicators, learners assess the health of a forest area and see how soil scientists, wildlife biologists, arborists, and other forest professionals monitor forests.
  4. Seeking Sustainability—Learners explore the concept of sustainability by examining the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, while also taking a look at some jobs involved in ensuring forest sustainability.

 

Envisioning a Green Career

Employers are looking for workers who can communicate and collaborate, and who are creative leaders. PLT’s Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers includes a self-assessment for youth to analyze their leadership and people-oriented skills (often referred to as “soft” skills), as well as their technical skills in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

These quizzes can help any job seeker in the green economy envision the right career for them, whether or not they are aiming for a STEM career. Youth can match their personality type with an array of forest-related career opportunities and learn about the skills needed for different jobs.

Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers also suggests additional resources to broaden and deepen learners’ exploration of forest careers, for example, green job boards, forestry career websites, and where to connect with forestry professionals.

 

Get the Guide

Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers is available either as an e-book (PDF) or printed guide and can be purchased directly from shop.plt.org.

 

 

PLT also offers training for teachers and other educators, career and guidance counselors, scouts, 4-H, and FFA leaders, foresters and natural resource professionals, etc. through state-run in-person workshops. Workshop participants receive a copy of the Green Jobs guide, see the activities modeled, learn how best to use the unit with the youth they reach, and make local connections. Contact your state’s PLT Coordinator for information about PLT workshops in your state.

Also check out some of the downloadable and online resources available from our website to support PLT’s Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers unit, including the student worksheets, career cards, and job factsheets. See this month’s collection of EE Resources for a sample of online resources, and login or register to access all the supporting resources we’ve curated to date for Green Jobs: Exploring Forest Careers.