Presenter(s): Eleanor Williams
Co Presenter(s): Brittany Calabria, Chloe Johnson, Hannah Schmidt, Cameron Wallenfels, Savannah Winchell
Faculty Mentor(s): Katie Lynch
Oral Session 4 C
Interactive environmental education has proven to enhance emotional health, academic success, and physical development. By cultivating a sense of place early on, kids can apply critical thinking through unique teaching techniques to discover the importance of conservation efforts. The Restoring Connections team is a part of the Environmental Leadership Program at the University of Oregon that collaborates with Mt. Pisgah Arboretum and Adams Elementary School to develop an outdoor field trip curriculum for elementary students. Our mission is to engage students with nature through a place-based environmental education approach incorporating pre-trip lessons and outdoor field trip experiences three times a year. Our curriculum focuses on woodland, wetland, and riparian habitats with three different local focal species for each grade. Goals that are central to our curriculum include discussion of the effects and impact of seasonal changes, habitat restoration through stewardship projects and developing a general respect and appreciation for the environment. Through completion of this program we intend to create a classroom culture that incorporates DEI (Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion) and engaged pedagogy principles; enabling students to connect to the environment at Mt. Pisgah and empower the students to use their learned knowledge to create a long-lasting, meaningful connection to the world around them. We will be exposing 15 K-4th grade classrooms, a total of 450 students, to the wonders of Mt. Pisgah’s natural ecosystems. At the end of this program students will be well versed in environmental problems and apply knowledge to investigate, plan, and create a sustainable future.