Happy New Year! Thank you for being a part of Idaho’s EE community. We encourage you to further your commitment by starting/renewing your IdEEA membership for this year!
News
The Power of Place: Authentic Learning Through Place-Based Education Book Study. Please join us for this online professional development, perfect for all teachers! This one-credit course will be online through Google Meet on Thursday evenings beginning January 4, 2024 at 7 PM. Sign up now!
EPA Seeks Applications for 2024 President’s Environmental Student and Teacher Awards. Applications for both awards are due no later than Monday, January 15, 2024. Application and eligibility information for Student Awards is available on EPA’s PEYA page; or email PEYA@epa.gov. Application and eligibility information for Teacher Awards is available on EPA’s PIAEE page; or email PIAEE@epa.gov.
Nature's Best Hope update. Author Douglas Tallamy will be the keynote speaker at an event on February 9 and our Reading Wildly book group will be discussing the book and his talk on February 13. See additional details in the Upcoming Events section below.
Requesting IdEEA board nominations for the 2024 year! Nominations for IdEEA’s next term starting in March 2024 can be entered HERE See details in the Volunteer Opportunities section below.
Professional Workshops
Idaho Ecosystems with Projects WILD, WET, and Learning Tree. Get a head start on your 2024 professional development, February 13 - April 2, 2024. In this interactive virtual class, receive training and award-winning materials from Project WILD, Project WET, and Project Learning Tree, to engage upper elementary students in learning about Idaho ecosystems. You will leave the course with plans to use materials from the course with students, whether teaching in the classroom or remotely, both indoors and out. Sign up today!
Jan 16: Managing Eco-Anxiety through Outdoor Learning
Jan 23: Outdoor Learning Astronomy
Feb 6: Indigenous Resources for Outdoor Learning
Feb 13: Apprentissage de l'astronomie en plein air
Feb 20: Stories in the Wild: Animal Tracks & Traces
Feb 27: Enhancing Climate Education through Active Learning
Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
Project Learning Tree Explorations – Anytime, Anywhere. In this self-guided 1-credit virtual training, you will select a specific Project Learning Tree (PLT) environmental education curriculum as your focus and complete an online training on that material. In addition, you will conduct PLT activities, explore abundant supporting resources, and reflect and plan how you’ll use PLT in your individual situation. We always have a section of this class open. Get links for Fall 2023, Spring 2024 and Summer 2024.
Free training from Connection through Curiosity in 2024. This free training is all about how to break out of monotonous schedules and screen hypnosis and truly connect with the child in your life through nature and without having to add another rigid activity or learn complicated instructions. After going through this course, you’ll know how to get your child off of screens and how to structure quality time with them outside, foster their curiosity, and create an open and trusting environment leading to an unbreakable relationship. Sign up HERE for the course, and join the private Facebook group for further engagement opportunities.
Resources & Grants
Planet Stewards for Climate Change education. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has created the Planet Stewards Education Project for students and instructors interested in climate change issues.
Sharing Citizen Science resources from our network! “I was teaching an environmental science lesson to some elementary students before the holidays and when they were doing a webquest about citizen science they ended up on the IdEEA citizen science webpage. They thought I should let you know that we were using it as a resource, and found some great information so thank you 🙂 They also decided it would be nice of us to return the favor, so I had them pick out another educational page for us to share with you over the break! Citizen Science 101 - It's great for kids & students - we learned a lot from it, so they thought it'd be a helpful link for you to add to your page they found. They'd be so proud and I'd love to show them their suggestion 🙂 Thanks so much again and happy New year!! - Ms. Garcia & Katrina, Elizabeth, Julia, and Chris”
Upcoming Events
Jan 4: The Power Of Place Book Group. This one-credit course will be online through Google Meet on Thursday evenings beginning January 4, 2024 at 7 PM. Sign up here
Jan 16: Managing Eco-Anxiety through Outdoor Learning. Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
Jan 17: Nature Activities for Learners. Join The Outdoor Learning Store for this series of 4 x 60 minute virtual sessions for Elementary and Middle School Educators to improve the nature activities you provide for learners. Come away with practical, cross-curricular, hands-on activities and skills! Online from January 17-February 21, 2024. Details and registration at https://outdoorlearningstore.com/event/nature-activities/
Jan 23: Outdoor Learning Astronomy. Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
Feb 6: Indigenous Resources for Outdoor Learning. Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
Feb 9: Idea of Nature Lecture Series. Douglas Tallamy, author of Nature's Best Hope is the key note speaker at Boise State University at 6 PM.https://www.adaswcd.org/events
Feb 13: Reading Wildly: Nature's Best Hope Book Group. Alia’s Coffee Shop (908 West Main Street, Boise 83702) at 5 PM. Reserve your book copy and event spot at: Reading Wildly Book Club Event Link
Feb 20: Stories in the Wild: Animal Tracks & Traces. Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
Feb 27: Enhancing Climate Education through Active Learning. Learn more & sign-up: https://outdoorlearningstore.com/workshops/
March 5-7: Green Schools Conference in Santa Fe, NM.
March 27: Wild Learning. This course from The Outdoor Learning Store will include guided conversations, activities and discussion with the author, practical activities for you to try and get feedback on, and community building with other educators while discovering how to deliver your own ‘Wild Learning’. Details and registration at https://outdoorlearningstore.com/event/wild-learning/.
Employment/Volunteer/Student Opportunities
IdEEA Board Nominations are now open for the 2024 year! Nominations for IdEEA’s next term starting in March 2024 can be entered HERE We’re looking for passionate and committed EE advocates to support and expand our work across the state. Applications are due by January 31, 2024. Applicants will be reviewed in February and notified before the next Board term begins in March 2024.
Miami University’s Project Dragonfly is accepting applications for 2024 Earth Expeditions graduate courses. These extraordinary experiences at global field sites in 15 countries throughout Africa, Asia, Australia, and the Americas can build toward the Global Field Program (GFP), a master's degree that combines summer field courses worldwide with web learning communities so that students can complete the GFP master's part-time from anywhere in the United States or abroad. Applications are being accepted until January 28 with courses beginning in May 2024. Project Dragonfly also offers the Advanced Inquiry Program (AIP) master's degree that combines web instruction from Miami University with face-to-face experiential learning and field study through several AIP sites in the U.S. Applications for Miami's 2024 cohorts are being now being accepted until February 28, with place-based experiences provided at zoos and botanical gardens in Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Jacksonville, New York, San Diego, and St. Louis. The Miami University Graduate School will waive the $50 application fee for those who attend an Information Session preceding the fee payment step of the application process.
IdEEA Updates
New year, new newsletter schedule! We heard your calls for more frequent communications so we’re moving this newsletter to a monthly schedule. Each issue will be a bit more streamlined since we’ll be sharing updates more often. Please email us at communications@idahoee.org with any questions, comments, or ideas for future newsletters.
Are you an IdEEA member? Then you just learned about our new membership benefits! Each member is entitled to download a FREE 14-page lesson plan on Habitats created in partnership with the National Outdoor Learning Alliance. Besides this benefit, your incredibly affordable membership allows us to provide support to EE educators across the state and grants you access to members-only perks and events. Become a member today!
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About this newsletter
We bring you the latest Environmental Education resources, events, and opportunities from around Idaho, now once per month. You can be a part of this process by sharing resources, events, jobs, etc. with communications@idahoee.org under the subject “Newsletter.”
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