? Approaching Fall Together ? Watershed Alliance Fall 2020 programs

Approaching Fall Together

As we reimagine our classrooms for the fall, “back to school” has a different feel this year. While many things are still unknown – one this is certain, we are here for you! We have spent the summer gathering feedback and re-designing our programs to meet the needs of you and your students this fall. 

We are launching a virtual lineup of programs in September and we will have water quality monitoring equipment available to borrow. Please see our list of Fall 2020 programs below and let us know if you feel like something is missing. 

For quick access to all of our Watershed Alliance Fall 2020 programs and their descriptions head to our Virtual Learning page on our website.

The Watershed Alliance Education Team, 
Ashley, Caroline and Nate 

Fall 2020 Programs Overview

  • Stream Monitoring – a guided virtual stream assessment that focuses on biologic indicators and ecosystem health
  • Keeping the Balance -a guided virtual fish dissection, featuring fisheries sampling techniques, and a series of short videos: “fish files” to highlight a few fish species found in Lake Champlain
  • Lake Champlain Live – a guided virtual trip aboard the R/V Melosira that dives into lake ecology and current water quality issues
  • Zoom a Scientist – a continuation of our Spring 2020 series that allows students and the public to meet local scientists and hear about the research happening in the Basin (sessions will be less than 1 hour)
  • Watershed Explorers Challenge– a self-guided watershed booklet with 11 activities (that can be completed offline), rooted in NGSS practices, to engage students in watershed science
  • Teacher Training for Watershed Explorers – our staff will provide an overview of the booklet to framilarize teachers with this new resource
  • Borrow Water Quality Monitoring Equipment – borrow equipment for free to conduct a field investigation with your students

Meet our Fall 2020 Interns


Opportunities

Students:

Teens Reaching Youth (TRY) – 4H20
TRY stands for Teens Reaching Youth and is an environmental leadership opportunity for students in grades 7-12. It is an environmental education program taught by teens and designed to increase environmental literacy and responsibility in younger youth. TRY for the Environment connects young people to real-world environmental problems by allowing them to be key change agents contributing to real-world solutions. Learn more. 

Two separate sessions are being offered.

2020 Youth Environmental Summit (YES) – virtual
The Youth Environmental Summit (YES) is an annual event for students in grades 6-12 who want to learn about environmental issues and find ways to take action. Workshops will include topics on climate change, renewable energy, composting and waste management solutions as schools, watersheds and much more. Visit the 4H page above for more information.

Program Date:
Friday, October 30th

Watershed Explorers Challenge 
The Watershed Explorer Challenge booklet has 11 activities, rooted in NGSS practices that are designed for young people to learn about watershed science and the Lake Champlain Basin.

This is a free resource for youth and teachers. This is a learning experience for students and their families or classrooms to engage in at their own pace. Students that complete all the activities in the booklet will be awarded the title of Watershed Explorer and receive a certificate. The challenge has been designed for middle school aged youth, but can also be appropriate for younger and older students. 

Teachers:

Watershed Explorers Challenge Teacher Training 

As mentioned above, the Watershed Explorer Challenge is an 11 activity booklet intended for autonomous learning from students from home or in classroom. If you are interested in using this resource in the classroom, but would like more information about how to incorporate it, then please join us for our teacher training.

Training Date:
Tuesday, September 29th
4-5pm
*Registration required

Stormwater Education Methods (NR295/395)
The 16-week course educates teachers about stormwater, watersheds, green infrastructure, and associated topics, and engages students in stormwater stewardship projects. Learn more.

STARTS NEXT WEEK! Reach out to Ashley Eaton, akeaton@uvm.edu if you want to join! 

Course Dates and Schedule:
August 31, 2020 – December 14, 2020 (all online)

For more information contact:
Ashley Eaton, akeaton@uvm.edu or
Kris Stepenuck, kstepenu@uvm.edu

Statewide Survey
 The Vermont Education & Environment Network is striving to support and connect educators of all types across the state to benefit our learners and our communities.

We hope that by taking 5 minutes to complete this survey you can help us identify what educators, schools, and community organizations are able to provide this fall; what needs exist; and how the Vermont Education and Environment Network can provide support and connect educators. 

Take the Online Survey

Survey will close on September 16th. 

Educator Webinar Series
The Vermont Education and Environment Networkis a coalition of organizations and individuals whose mission is to foster a network of individuals and organizations working together to promote high quality outdoor, environmental, and educational experiences. They are currently hosting webinars to provide virtual resources to the teaching community. Learn more. 

Join the next one, September 15th @ 4PM – TAKING TEACHING OUTDOORS 

Registration Required 

Giant Lake Champlain Map

Meet the newest, biggest, coolest new tool for your school: the Giant Lake Champlain Map! An accurate and detailed 35′ x 25′ vinyl map of our watershed. The giant map is designed to be a spatial and geographical learning tool for teachers and students. Lessons on the map can truly explore any aspect of the Lake Champlain Basin: history, water quality, geography, science, music, math, literature, and more.

The Giant Lake Champlain Map Project is a partnership between Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, Lake Champlain Basin Program, and Castleton University.

The Giant Map project includes $500 stipends for 10 educators who:
 1. Create a curriculum unit based on the giant map
2. Present their curriculum unit to students
3. Share or teach this curriculum unit to colleagues at an in-person meeting or virtual presentation session
Interested?  Contact Elizabeth Lee at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum or submit a request here.


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