Education Resources

Looking for help meeting Model Curriculum Guidelines?

Here are several resources, some specific to Ohio, that can help you with lesson plans.
We are working on creating a directory of resources for each area of the state (nature centers, naturalists, area parks to do nature study) but until then, please reference this list below:

 

Ag in the Classroom www.agclassroom.org/  and

 

Air Pollution – What’s the Solution? modules for students in grades 6-12 utilizing real-time atmospheric and weather data, from US EPA, the Clean Air Association of Northeast States, and Stevens Institute of Technology, www.k12science.org/curriculum/airproj/

 

Byrd Polar Research Institute at The Ohio State University

Antarctica and earth science lessons for grades 2-12, http://bprc.osu.edu/

 

Calculators for Kids: Important STEM Tools

http://www.mortgagecalculator.org/helpful-advice/calculators-for-kids.php

 

Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets at the University of Kansas, includes K-12 lessons on topics like ice sheets, glaciers, sea level change, weather, climate and global warming, https://www.cresis.ku.edu/education/iceicebaby.html

 

Exploratorium | The Science of Cooking
http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/

 

Facing the Future www.facingthefuture.org lesson plans on global issues and sustainability, including calculating environmental impacts

 

Great Lakes Climate Change Curriculum from Ohio Sea Grant and Ohio State University Earth Systems Education,http://changingclimate.osu.edu/topics/education/

 

Give Water A Hand (University of Wisconsin Extension curriculum)

www.uwex.edu/erc/gwah/

 

Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) from NASA and NOAA, www.globe.gov

 

Healthy Water, Healthy People learning modules for grades 6-12 from International Project WET, The Water Course, and Hach Scientific)www.healthywater.org   and www.epa.ohio.gov/oee   See also correlations to Ohio’s Academic Content Standards for science education, at

 

Journey North www.learner.org/jnorth/index.html

 

Keystone Center’s “CSI: Climate Status Investigations” (US DOE and US NETL middle & high school activities) http://www.keystonecurriculum.org/

 

Leopold Education Project www.lep.org

 

Monarch Watch at University of Kansas www.monarchwatch.org

 

NSTA | Freebies for Teachers
http://www.nsta.org/publications/freebies.aspx

 

Ohio Energy Project, www.ohioenergy.org

 

Ohio Ag in the Classroom, http://www.agclassroom.org/state/summaries/ohio.cfm

 

Project EXCITE at Bowling Green State University (Grade 4-9 problem-based learning episodes on environmental health science, aligned with Ohio standards) http://edhd.bgsu.edu/excite/

 

Project Food, Land and People www.foodlandpeople.org

 

Project Learning Tree

Program is correlated to the 2003 Academic Content StandardsPlease review Ohio’s Model Curriculum for Science to find links to these programs in the Instructional Strategies and Resources section for more updated correlation to Ohio’s New Learning Standards.

See especially the green schools modules at www.greenschools.org for

 

Project WET (Water Education for Teachers)

Program is correlated to the 2003 Academic Content StandardsPlease review Ohio’s Model Curriculum for Science to find links to these programs in the Instructional Strategies and Resources section for more updated correlation to Ohio’s New Learning Standards.

Project WILD  

Program is correlated to the 2003 Academic Content StandardsPlease review Ohio’s Model Curriculum for Science to find links to these programs in the Instructional Strategies and Resources section for more updated correlation to Ohio’s New Learning Standards.

 

Science Fair Project Ideas, Answers & Tools

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/

 

Science for Ohio and InteGreat Science, lesson plans developed by Ohio teachers, through Miami University’s Center for Environmental Education

 

Science Lessons To Go, Going outdoors for science class is not only appealing to students but also brings new opportunities for hands-on experience with key science skills. Engage students in a discussion of animals’ basic needs using “Animal Habitat Survey” from Steve Rich’s Outdoor Science: Practical Guide(grades 3–8); then send the students outside to observe and identify the resources so they can understand habitats and their importance. Students can explore topography in the lesson “Mapping the Schoolyard” from Robert Blake and coauthors’ Inside-Out: Environmental Science in the Classroom and the Field (grades 3–8). Learning to use and interpret maps is a key skill that connects naturally with the outdoors. Or, take a page from the activities “Camouflage in Nature” and “Nature Walks” from Thomas Lord and Holly Travis’s Schoolyard Science:101 Easy and Inexpensive Activities(grades K–12) to help students observe and explore while getting physical exercise and learning what scientists do. For even more ideas on taking science classes outdoors, check out these additional NSTA Press resources: Bringing Outdoor Science In: Thrifty Classroom Lessons (K–8), Buzz Into Action: The Insect Curriculum Guide for Grades K–4, Hop Into Action: The Amphibian Curriculum Guide for Grades K–4, and Watershed Investigations: 12 Labs for High School Science (9–12)

 

The Science of Addiction: K-12 Integrated Prevention Curriculum
http://www.newbeginningsdrugrehab.org/the-science-of-addiction-k-12-integrated-prevention-curriculum

 

The 10 Best STEM Resources
http://www.nea.org/tools/lessons/stem-resources.html

 

Tox Town – Environmental Health Concerns and Toxic Chemicals Where You Live, Work and Play, from the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, www.toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/

 

US Department of Energy – Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy education pages, including K-12 Lesson plans, energy literacy, green your school and energy career resources https://www.energy.gov/eere/office-energy-efficiency-renewable-energy

US Department of Energy fossil energy study guides and classroom activities

http://fossil.energy.gov/education/energylessons/Study_Guides_and_Activities.html

 

US EPA Climate Change, www.epa.gov/climatechange and Climate Change for Kids, www.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/index.html

 

US EPA Climate Change Toolkit for Middle School:  “Climate Change, Wildlife, and Wildlands Toolkit for Formal and Informal Educators,” contains case studies and activities based on climate science, environmental education and stewardship information.http://www.globalchange.gov/resources/educators/toolkit

 

US EPA lesson plans on topics from Air to Water, http://www.epa.gov/students/teachers.html

 

US Geological Survey Learning Web www.usgs.gov/education/

 

US National Park Service lesson plans query results http://www.nps.gov/search/index.htm?query=lesson+plans

Windows on Waste Ohio curriculum on recycling, http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/15/pdf/Windows%20on%20Waste.pdf (will be migrating to Ohio EPA website in early 2013)

 

WOW!:  The Wonders of Wetlands, (NSTA recommended), http://wetland.org/

 

Good examples of commercially available curricula:

Creative Change Educational Solutions curriculum and resource center on sustainability, http://www.creativechange.net/crc

 

Habitable Planet multimedia environmental science course for high school teachers and adult learners, from Annenberg Media,http://www.learner.org/channel/courses/envsci/index.html

 

Kidwind modules and kits on sustainable energy, http://learn.kidwind.org/

Research

Synthesis of Research on Benefits of Nature to Education, Children & Nature Network
National Wildlife Federation’s new report:  Back to School: Back Outside!
The RSPB Children Need Nature Report

Articles

• Student Gains from Place-Based Education, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center
Teaching Social Responsibility: The Window into Green, Educational Leadership
Do Our Kids Have Nature-Deficit Disorder, Educational Leadership
• Benefits of Gardening for Children, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center
Using the Outdoors to Enhance Classroom Performance; National Wildlife Federation