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Contact:
Vanessa Bullwinkle
vbullwinkle@forestfoundation.org
202.463.2472
Washington, D.C. – Do students know the
water from their faucet might be naturally filtered by a forest instead of a
water treatment plant? Do they know they
can calculate the carbon sequestered by the trees in their own backyard? Do they know that one of the biggest threats
to America’s forests is the transfer of family property between generations?
These big-picture, thought-provoking questions are examples
of some of the topics explored in a new Project Learning Tree® (PLT)
environmental education curriculum resource for high school teachers.
Nine activities in PLT’s Exploring
Environmental Issues: Focus on Forests guide teach students about forest
health, watersheds, climate change, who owns America's forests, and more. In
the “Forest to Faucet” activity, students evaluate the extent to which their
own community’s water supply is affected by forests and forest management. In “Climate Change and Forests,” students use
a carbon footprint calculator to analyze their personal effect on carbon
dioxide levels in the atmosphere, and explore how carbon sequestration by trees
can affect carbon dioxide levels. Another activity “Who Owns America’s
Forests?” examines the critical issue of changing forestland use and
ownership. Through local interviews,
students capture relevant data for their region, and offer possible solutions
to help conserve forestland in their community.
High school educators and junior college professors can
obtain a copy of PLT’s Exploring Environmental Issues: Focus on Forests curriculum
by attending a PLT professional
development workshop in their area. PLT’s
50-state network trains more than 30,000 PreK-12 educators every year through
1,500 workshops held across the country.
“PLT helps teachers incorporate a hands-on approach to
learning core subject matter and basic skills by exploring complex, real-world
environmental issues,” says Kathy McGlauflin, Director of Project Learning
Tree. “Focus on Forests investigates
the profound changes occurring in North American forests today, and students
apply what they learn to their own community investigations.”
PLT uses experiential learning, inquiry-based
investigations, outdoor education, and service-learning to help educators make
the learning relevant and fun for students.
Through its state programs, PLT provides teachers the professional
development and tools they need to supplement a well-rounded, enriching
education, including environmental education lesson plans and content tied to
state and national academic standards, and connections to local professional educators
and natural resource specialists.
The 176-page Focus on
Forests guide helps teachers provide students with meaningful experiences
related to classroom content. Lesson plans address a multitude of subject
areas, including STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) subjects,
civics, and social studies. A “knowledge primer,” ready-to-use student
worksheets, and hands-on classroom lessons and field investigations help
students develop an understanding and appreciation for stewardship and informed
decision-making on issues that affect forests. The activities develop students’
critical thinking skills, and students engage in debates about real-life forest
management decisions.
“Focus on Forests provides
students and teachers with tools to consider and assess the social, economic,
and environmental value of trees and forests, and their relevance for people not
just locally, but globally as well,” says Jackie Stallard, Manager of Education
Programs for Project Learning Tree.
“The activities within this [Focus on Forests] curriculum provide a wealth of information for
the student, as well as the educator,” said Chad Garick, Geography Professor at
Jones County Junior College in Ellisville, Mississippi, and one of 38 teachers
who field-tested the activities with students.
“The activities are presented in a balanced approach, and require
students to utilize higher order thinking skills.”
Since 1976, PLT has provided environmental education
training and academic curricula for teachers and other educators working with
youth from preschool through grade 12, and college students. To ensure that PLT meets the needs of
educators, hundreds of professional educators and technical experts help
develop, review, field test, and independently evaluate all of PLT’s curriculum
materials. The process includes
research, surveys, writing workshops, and reviews with educators and resource
professionals; revisions based on pilot testing and field testing; and formal
assessment of impact on student learning by independent evaluators.
“I was thoroughly impressed with the questions provided
within these activities, which in turn guided some amazing debates,” said Susan
Duffy, 11-12th Grade Biology Teacher at Hillsboro High School in
North Dakota. “The discussions and
discourse among my juniors and seniors was wonderful! The students and I really learned a lot.”
The United Nations General Assembly designated 2011 as
International Year of Forests to promote broader understanding of the
importance of forests and bolster global efforts to promote sustainable forest
management and conservation. When
teachers head back to school, they can take advantage of the International Year
of Forests and this new Project Learning Tree curriculum guide to get their students
outside exploring first-hand environmental issues focusing on forests.
Support for the development of PLT’s Exploring Environmental Issues: Focus on Forests was provided by
the American Forest Foundation, the USDA Forest Service, and Idaho Forest
Products Group.
A high-quality product shot of the curriculum is available
at http://www.plt.org/FocusonForestsCover.
About Project Learning Tree
Project Learning Tree® (PLT) uses forests as a window on
the world and provides educators with environmental education curriculum
resources that can be integrated into lesson plans for all grades and subject
areas. PLT teaches students how to
think, not what to think, about complex environmental issues, and helps them
acquire the skills they need to make sound choices about the environment. Developed in 1976, PLT’s 50-state network
includes more than 500,000 trained educators using PLT materials that cover the
total environment. PLT is a program of
the American Forest Foundation. For more
information, visit www.plt.org.
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