CNDDB News Blog

It’s back-to-school season, and this year parents are faced with new challenges around distance learning and COVID-19. Thankfully, Nature’s classroom is always open! We spoke with Le’a Gleason and Meg Seifert from Headwaters Science Institute to get some inspiration on how to take advantage of this moment and incorporate more environmental education into family life.

Meg created Headwaters with the aim to bring more hands-on-learning to students in science classes through field research, which was one of her favorite parts of her academic journey to earn her PhD. Headwaters programs have been built around students designing their own original research projects and conducting data collection in the field. When Coronavirus became a threat to in-person learning, Headwaters aimed to help students stay mentally engaged in learning by creating online programs that still encourage interaction with the environment. The goal of their online learning programs is to still inspire students to complete activities on their own outside, but through lessons that are delivered digitally.

You can visit Headwaters Science Institute’s website for more info on their Fall 2020 online offerings, including programs designed to engage high school-age students in extracurricular scientific research.

Now more than ever, it’s important to keep kids engaged in the outdoors. Seifert hopes that by fostering curiosity through science, programs like these are educating the problem solvers of tomorrow.

Some of Meg’s favorite online-accessible offerings include Science Friday and Sierra Nevada Journeys.

Here are some other top picks for kids of all ages:

• California Natural Resources Agency online Educational Portal: Includes links to a wide variety learning tools from across all CNRA departments.
• Seek by iNaturalist: This app uses photo-recognition software to help ID plants and animals captured on your phone’s camera.
• Sac Splash: Sacramento-based education organization focused on vernal pools and hydrology.
• Animalogic: A weekly in-depth exploration of the animal kingdom on YouTube.
• SciShow: A daily YouTube show that delves into the scientific subjects that defy our expectations and make us even more curious!
• ESRI educational resources: Tons of free lessons for young mappers.
• Ecosystems of California with Erika Zavaleta: In-depth tour of the state’s natural history, for high school age youth.

Books:

• Sharing Nature with Children, Joseph Cornell
• The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada, John Muir Laws (who also has nature journaling resources on his website)
• Atlas of the Biodiversity of California, CDFW (new edition coming soon!)

Do you have a favorite environmental education resource you’d like to share with our readers? Email us and we’ll include it in a follow-up blog!