Curriculum Development

Ecocity Partners develops environment education curriculum for schools, non-profit organizations, and private groups. Please contact us if you would like to develop a new environmental education program. To request access to the full curriculum for any of the programs listed here, please email ecocitycoloradosprings@gmail.com.

Big Cats! A high school lesson in comparative anatomy

Citizen Science Curriculum for Upper Elementary/Middle School

Learning Outcomes for Four Rotations of Outdoor Learning:

citizen science- math standards- title: Citizen scientists collect ecological data to protect wildlands with scientific information

Students will:

learn about referents and how body parts were used to develop the English system of measurement.
employ various measurement devices, determining which is most appropriate for the measurement task.
measure several ecological parameters.
compare the results of each student team.
reflect on the value of repetitive measurement and compute an average of the class data.

ecology- science standards – title: Observing ecology, looking for evidence of survival

Students will:

define ecology
collect information about the ecology of [your landscape]
conduct a plant inventory
reflect on the adaptations of local species to deal with environmental stresses

geology- science standards – title: A tumultuous relationship: Pikes Peak granite and the erosive forces of water

Students will:

define geology
collect soil samples and conduct a soil texture analysis
build mountains and erode them away with various water sources

ecological restoration- science standards – title: Restoring [your landscape]

Students will complete one of the following projects (or any service project your program requires):

Restore an old backcountry campground including soil decompaction, native seed collection and dispersal, mulching with native materials
Build a native plant rescue garden
Build steps to the new backcountry campground
Take an inventory of a listed noxious species on your property
trail construction/trail maintenance
Weed pulling

Youth Ecological Literacy Program 2.0- enrichment at Steele Elementary School (2015)

click on the image to expand

Below is a sampling of past environmental education curricula I have written.

If you are interested in communicating about EE curriculum, please leave a comment below.

Greater Arkansas River Nature Association (GARNA)

http://garna.org/programssummary/yelp/

GARNA ecology curriculum_2010

Forest Ecology written for the Buena Vista Conservation Camp

Forest Ecology for Middle School

Forest Ecology Student Handout

forest_ecology_poster

Forest Ecology Poster- Laminate this and then students can plot their data in the field using a dry erase marker. The original is poster sized, so the lamination had to be done using a professional machine available at a print shop, or maybe in the school library.