Education Program
Current Educator Workshops
Help bring watershed awareness into your schools. We offer workshops on school gardening, stream ecology, and urban wildlife to give you exciting activities aligned with the California State Content Standards in Math, Science, and Language Arts. Join us this year for an amazing professional development experience. Sign up today!
View and Print our Fall 2009 Program Flyer
For more information about any of our teacher workshops, contact Adam Hale at (510) 665-3539 or email adam@thewatershedproject.org
FREE Teacher In-Service: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Rot
Put the 4R's in your curriculum today! The Watershed Project is now offering a FREE 3-hour
professional development in-service training at your school. Trainings are available throughout the
week to any Alameda County school and its educators. We can help you link the 4R's (Reduce, Reuse,
Recycle, and Rot) to your classroom and school garden curriculum. All content fits in with the
California Content Standards. Trainings also offer customized technical support on soil science,
composting, reclaimed garden design, sheet mulching, and more. As a participant, you will receive
a mini-grant to jump start your own program along with free activity and curriculum readers.
Kids in Gardens
When: Saturday, October 24, 2009; 9am - 4pm
Where: Martin Luther King Middle School, San Francisco
Registration: $60; scholarhsips available
This is not your garden variety workshop. In this full-day workshop, you will learn how to create and sustain a successful school garden that is suited to your specific environment. We teach by example and with hands-on activities. At the end of the class, we send you off with plants, seeds and composting bins. You'll be equipped with knowledge of soil, composting, water conservation and the ability to create a wildlife habitat. You will surely be prepared to involve your students in a rewarding activity and you'll be able to meet the California Content Standards.
Click here to view and print the Kids in Gardens flyer
Getting Started in School Garden Design
Part 2 - Tuesday, November 24, 2009; 4pm-6:30pm
Where: Lupine Hills Elementary, Hercules
Registration: $25; scholarhsips available
Get a hands-on introduction to designing and building a green school garden from the ground up. This workshop will include: Basic mapping, layout and elements of school garden planning and design; Samples and sources of recycled and reclaimed materials to use in your school garden; Practice designing different themed gardens; Exploring watering options, including drip irrigation systems; A course reader with resources for design, irrigation and soil testing.
Click here to view and print the Getting Started in Garden Design flyer
Current Student Programming
San Mateo Creek Champions Student Programming
This FREE student program is available to all 3rd through 5th grade classes in San Mateo County.
Over the course of two hour-long visits your students will learn about watershed ecology and how
their school and community is connect to the Bay. They will learn how they can prevent pollution
from entering into their local creeks and will even get to add pollution data that they
collect into the Creek Chronicles website so that others can learn about the great work being done
in San Mateo schools. All activities are correlated to the State Content Standards and teachers
will receive a manual with background and follow up information. Sign your class up today as space is limited!
Richmond WIN Program
The Richmond Watershed INstitute program engages second grade students in active learning and
introduces them to the ideas of a watershed and nonpoint source pollution. Students participate in
an in-depth discussion of those ideas, including an examination of the local neighborhood and where
its water goes. The program includes a field trip to the bay for students to experience first hand
what they have been learning in the classroom. The program culminates in the creation of an outreach
project that will reinforce what students learned and will educate the rest of the school community.
Previous Workshops
Kids in Creeks
Explore the world of wetlands and gather the tools to integrate the rich diversity of creek ecology into your
curriculum. This one-day workshop for educators will introduce creek ecology and provide many student-friendly
activities that range from kindergarten to high school. In this course you will map your local watersheds, learn to
sample water quality using seven different parameters, and identify aquatic insects and plants. You will receive: a
fast-paced day of hands-on training; a curriculum binder that meets California Content Standards; academic credit
through Cal State East Bay; and a helpful guide complete with both tips for creating simple water sampling equipment
and information about your local creek.
Kids in Marshes
Explore the world of wetlands and the plants and animals that have adapted to survive in these
increasingly rare ecosystems. Discover the dynamics at work in the Bay Area's remaining marshes
and take home lessons in ecology that K-6 students will value. You will receive: A curriculum binder
that meets California Content Standards; eligibility for a free marsh ecology class visit and field
trip for your students; and academic credit through Cal State East Bay.
Watershed Teaching Tools
Our comprehensive five-day training provides educators with the knowledge and resources they need to
bring hands-on environmental education into their classrooms. The topics covered are: watershed, marsh
and creek ecology of the San Francisco Bay; gardening concepts for a healthy watershed; ways to reduce
pesticides and toxins around your home and school; pollution prevention and resource conservation; and
integrating and evaluating environmental education activities into your curriculum.
Plant Smart! Water Wise School Gardening
Not sure where to start with choosing plants for your school garden? Explore the physical conditions in your garden
and develop short and long term goals. You will learn how to plan accordingly so you can maximize space and grow healthy,
happy plants. You will also learn how to assess your site and choose plants that will thrive, determine your site conditions,
and design your garden to conserve water. You will receive a helpful guide with background information and resources as well
as grant information to help fund your school garden project.
From Healthy Soil to Harvest
This comprehensive three-day program will provide educators with tools to design and begin a school garden.
The course begins with designing a garden, selecting appropriate plants, and getting to know your soil type
and water needs. Try your hand at composting, basic plant botany, propagation and kid-friendly cooking from
the garden. Practical activities and expert advice will give you what you need to jumpstart a garden at your school.
For more information about any of our teacher workshops, contact Adam Hale at (510) 665-3539 or email adam@thewatershedproject.org
After-School Programs
Free After-School Riparian Lab
Fun and learning come together in this 12-part program, where students learn about their local creek.
Our well-trained and caring staff members use educational games and activities to teach kids of all
ages about creek and watershed dynamics, riparian habitat, human impact on the environment, and the
importance of stewardship and outreach.
For more information about our after-school riparian lab, contact Becky Lithander at (510) 665-3482 or email becky@thewatershedproject.org.
The Watershed Project offers environmental stewardship projects that satisfy
service-learning requirements for students and teachers. Join us in improving the
health and beauty of the San Francisco Bay through hands-on education and community service
events! Projects include two to three in-class visits and one or two field trips. Bus scholarships are
available. Our current projects are:
For more information about any of our service-learning projects, contact Juliana Gonzalez at (510) 665-3597 or email
juliana@thewatershedproject.org.
Service-Learning Projects
Habitat Garden along the Richmond Greenway
Students help beautify Richmond by planting and maintaining a habitat garden along the Richmond bicycle pedestrian Greenway. The Habitat Garden is one of a series of gardens that are beginning to flourish along the greenway as it develops into a cherished community space for public enjoyment. Students will learn about the importance of insect pollinators in the nearby edible gardens, and how to recognize local plants and wildlife. Service work along the Richmond Greenway also lets students confront environmental justice issues as they work with residents to enjoy nature and eat more locally-grown vegetables and fruits.
Discussion topics for the classroom: obesity in Richmond; environmental justice; biology;
gardening and community building.
Creek and Shoreline Trash Assessments and Reduction Program
Students learn how to conduct trash assessments that help identify the types and sources of trash that reach our local creeks and shoreline. These assessments take place around the Bay to help strengthen marine debris prevention strategies and litter abatement campaigns. Students will exercise their scientific skills as they tally and analyze data and are challenged to imagine strategies to reduce the amount of trash that reaches our creeks and shoreline. The projects provide real, usable data to organizations and agencies that are working to address this systemic issue.
Discussion topics for the classroom: marine debris; creek and shoreline ecology; math and
science; field data collection processes; environmental justice; trash management; recycling.
Native Oyster Restoration Monitoring
The Watershed Project partners with the Bay-wide Native Oyster Restoration project to offer students the opportunity to monitor the native oyster population in the San Francisco Bay. Students learn how scientists are measuring the progress of oyster restoration projects that are taking place at multiple locations around the Bay. While documenting oyster growth at test sites, students learn about the history and ecology of the Bay. They also learn how scientific monitoring techniques help researchers build valuable data collections over time. As they participate, students generate usable data to provide to the Oyster Working Group and other local scientists.
Discussion topics for the classroom: water quality; bay area ecology; tides; math and science;
research techniques; oyster biology and local marine ecosystems; population dynamics; oyster
restoration; salmon-oyster interactions.
Art Projects for Litter Reduction Education and Outreach
Students will design and paint ceramic tiles that will be used to decorate the sides of sidewalk
trash cans in the City of San Pablo. Their permanent, public artworks inspire local residents to
use the receptacles and not litter the streets. As they create artistic images that help beautify
the city and communicate a positive message, students learn about the trash and litter problem
and how communities work to persuade their residents to take positive action.
Discussion topics for the classroom: littering and trash problems; styrofoam and plastic bag bans
in other counties; creek and shoreline ecology; math; research; environmental justice; trash management;
recycling; publicity and marketing.
