Outstanding Environmental Educator of the Year Award
Each year, The Delaware Nature Society (DNS) honors outstanding Delaware public and private school teachers in the field of environmental education. Teachers may nominate themselves or be nominated by fellow teachers, principals, administrators, university instructors, officials of state natural resource agencies, Department of Education personnel and others. Recipients receive an original, personalized certificate of achievement, $300 worth of Nature Society personal enrichment programs, a one-year membership to the Nature Society, and statewide recognition through press releases, the DNS website and DNS newsletter. Teachers and their principals will be honored at the Delaware Nature Society's Annual Meeting in April.
2009 Recipient: Kim DeHaven, Sanford School
Nomination Deadline: February 6, 2010
Application Deadline: February 25, 2010
For an application, contact David Pragoff, School and Group Programs Team Leader, at 302- 239-2334, ext. 133 or
E-mail.
Volunteer & Paid Opportunities for Teachers
Do you have time during the week or during the summer? Do you want to teach outdoors and share your love of nature with children? Volunteer Guides (program instructors) are needed to teach school programs at all Delaware Nature Society sites, and part-time, paid Teacher-Naturalist positions are open year-round to teach school programs, scout programs, overnights, farm programs, and summer camps. Scheduling is very flexible and includes weekdays and weekends, daytime and evenings. Training is provided.
Contact David Pragoff, School and Group Programs Team Leader, at 302-239-2334, ext.133 or, for more information,
E-mail.
Graduate Teacher Courses
Each summer the Delaware Nature Society offers graduate courses for school teachers through the University of Delaware. Programs are based at Ashland Nature Center except where noted. All courses are in a 15 credit graduate course of study in environmental education.
Click here for more information. Registration begins April 2010. The four courses currently offered include:
SCEN 569 Delaware's Ecosystems - 3 Credits
Learn the basics of ecosystem structure and function while comparing Delaware's major ecosystems in the field. Integration with ecosystem and wetland kits, science standards and performance indicators; use of field technology; international ecological connections; associated environmental issues. [Natural Resources Standards 2, 3; Science Standards 1, 8]
EDUC 643 Environmental Education - 3 Credits
Survey of and practice with existing environmental education materials and programs; the development of lessons in environmental education; practical experience with a curriculum development and teaching procedures. [Natural Resources Standards 1, 2, 3, 4, 5; Science Standards 1, 5, 8]
EDUC 808 Internship in Education - 3 Credits
Ashland Nature Center, Hockessin or Abbott's Mill Nature Center, Milford
Permission required by instructor Helen Fischel; call 302-239-2334, ext. 114 or
E-mail.
ENWC 501 Natural History for Teachers - 3 Credits
Background information, methods, and materials for covering basic concepts of ecology, environmental problems, field natural history, particularly as applicable to Delaware. Lecture and discussions supplement outdoor studies in the field, forest, and stream estuary. [Natural Resource Standards 3, 5; Science Standards 5, 6, 7, 8]
For more information, contact Helen Fischel, Associate Director, Education, at 302-239-2334 ext. 114 or
E-mail.
Citizen Action - Service Learning
Your class can help make a difference! Our programs are great educational stepping stones that introduce students to the natural world and lead them down the pathway to environmental stewardship. The Delaware Nature Society offers two stewardship programs -Schoolyard Habitat and Stream Adoption - that can help your class make a difference at school and in the community. In addition to these two programs, the Delaware Nature Society can help you and your students select and implement a wide variety of service-learning projects to help improve water quality, enhance wildlife habitat, remove invasive species, or educate the school community, all while providing real experiences for your students that connect service activity to the science curriculum.
Schoolyard Habitat can help make your school grounds come alive! Schoolyard Habitats are outdoor, living classrooms that can provide valuable sanctuaries for songbirds, butterflies, and other wildlife while offering enhanced hands-on cross-curricular learning opportunities, on-site "field trips," and decreased grounds maintenance costs. The program provides official certification for school grounds that meet the basic needs of wildlife (food, water, cover, and places to raise young), while also taking measures to protect local water quality such as limiting the use of chemical fertilizer and pesticide inputs and reducing stormwater runoff.
Stream Adoption provides schools with the knowledge and equipment necessary to adopt and monitor their local stream. After attending certain field study programs, schools will receive an invitation and instructions on how they can adopt their local waterway. The Delaware Nature Society loans necessary monitoring equipment and provides Stream Adoption data sheets for schools to perform monitoring activities. Should you choose, DNS staff can visit your classroom to help prepare the students for their experience in the field and even help lead the outdoor program. After monitoring, schools can submit their completed Stream Adoption data sheets to DNS, and the data sheets are shared with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Student and citizen monitoring is a valuable tool for detecting and remedying pollution problems in our local waterways.
For more information about any of these programs, contact David Pragoff, School and Group Programs Team Leader, at 302-239-2334 ext. 133 or
E-mail.
District-wide programs
Delaware Nature Society (DNS) teaches environmental education programs for entire grade levels on a district-wide basis. Through contract programs, the district receives:
- Lessons that include the Big Ideas, Essential Questions, and Enduring Understandings described in the Delaware Science Content Standards
- Field based lessons that complement and reinforce the goals of classroom science kits
- Hands-on experiences provided by trained Teacher/Naturalists
- Pre- and post- materials for the classroom
- A teacher in-service workshop, taking teachers through the program that their students will experience to help them better prepare students and tie programs to curricula
- A classroom visit by a Teacher/Naturalist to prepare students for the trip
Contact David Pragoff, School and Group Programs Team Leader, by
E-mail or call 302-239-2334, ext.133 for more information or to arrange district-wide programs.
Partnership with ACEER Foundation
DNS supports the ACEER Foundation's school sponsorship program !AMIGOS! a Partnership for Education. This unique program supports conservation through education in USA and Peruvian rainforest schools and is connected to the Birds of Two Worlds field study program offered through Ashland Nature Center.
Contact Marguerite Gould, Director of Operations, ACEER Foundation at 610-738-0477 or
E-mail.
