A Guide to Creating Meaningful Watershed...

How to provide meaningful outdoor experiences for your

students as mandated by the Chesapeake Bay Program

Chesapeake 2000 Agreement

A Guide to Creating MeaningfulWatershed Experiences

1 Chesapeake Bay Program Education Workgroup: STEWARDSHIP ANDMEANINGFUL WATERSHED EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES.http://www.chesapeakebay.net/pubs/subcommittee/cesc/c2k.pdf

Introduction

The purpose of A Guide to Creating Meaningful WatershedExperiences is to provide information and resources thatwill enable educators to engage students in ”meaningful“

Bay or stream outdoor experiences1. A ”meaningful“ Bay orstream outdoor experience consists of at least three parts:inquiry-based field investigations; classroom based-research andstandards-based activities; and a student action designed andimplemented to reduce pollution and improve water quality inthe Chesapeake Bay and its watershed.

This guide is organized into three sections:

1. Definition of a Meaningful Watershed Experience andbackground on how this goal was developed.

2. How formal and informal educators can use the IntegratedWatershed Education (IWE) model to plan and implement aMeaningful Watershed Experience.

3. A case study of a school successfully implementing theIntegrated Watershed Education model to create MeaningfulWatershed Experiences for its students.

Contents

1 | What Is a Meaningful Watershed Experience?

2 | Integrated Watershed Education Model

6 | Integrated Watershed Education Case Study

Inserts

Addendum 1: Planning Projects through SystemsThinking and Authentic Investigations

Addendum 2: Tips for Taking Students Outside

NICOLE WENZKE

Cover photos: top left, reprinted with permission from SmithsonianInstitution; top right, CBF Staff; bottom left, Jenn Hulford; bottom right, David Owen Hawxhurst.

In June 2002, the governors of Pennsylvania, Maryland,and Virginia and the mayor of Washington, D.C., signedthe Chesapeake 2000 Agreement. This voluntary document

outlines goals and objectives to reduce nutrients, toxics, andsediments, while restoring underwater grasses, wetlands, oysterreefs, riparian buffers, and other keystone components of theBay system. If met by 2010, these goals will remove theChesapeake Bay from the EPA’s Impaired Waters list. In the”Stewardship and Community Engagement“ section of theAgreement, two objectives have a direct impact on our schoolsand the way we teach. They read as follows:

1. Beginning with the class of 2005, provide a meaningful Bayor stream outdoor experience for every school student inthe watershed before graduation from high school.

2. Provide students and teachers alike with opportunitiesto directly participate in local restoration and protectionprojects, and to support stewardship efforts in schools andon school property.

What Are the Criteria for a Meaningful WatershedExperience?

The Chesapeake Bay Program Education Workgroup(Stewardship and Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences,2001) defined the following eight criteria for a MeaningfulWatershed Educational Experience.

Essential Elements to a Meaningful Watershed Experience:■ Investigative or project-oriented■ Richly structured and based on high-quality

instructional design■ Integral part of the instructional program■ Considers the watershed as a system■ Part of a sustained activity■ Involves external sharing and communication■ Enhanced by natural resource personnel■ For all students

CBF has further defined these criteria by specifying a localcontext for the investigations and emphasizing the need forlearner-centered, collaborative instruction. As students areengaged in hands-on, meaningful investigations of theChesapeake Bay watershed, they will be motivated to act toprotect and restore it.

Meaningful Watershed Experiences must connect standards-basedclassroom activities with hands-on investigations in the field andauthentic assessments of learning that involve students in proj-ects that reduce pollution and improve water quality in orderto Save the Bay. The result is that students are taking positiveaction for the environment as a result of their investigations.

Components of a Meaningful Watershed Experience:

© 2004 Chesapeake Bay Foundation 1

I. What Is a Meaningful Watershed Experience?

StudentAction

Hands-OnOutdoor

Investigations

Standards-BasedActivities andAssessments

MeaningfulWatershedExperience

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Issues and questions that focus on the environment in andaround a school provide an engaging context for learningand will allow students to engage in Meaningful Watershed

Experiences. These experiences should integrate hands-on out-door investigations, classroom work, and restoration projects.CBF has created the Integrated Watershed Education (IWE) modelto assist teachers in involving students in outdoor investigationsof the local watershed. IWE is a strategy that educators canemploy to create Meaningful Watershed Experiences for students.IWE uses the local school and community setting and localissues to address learning goals and Chesapeake Bay environ-mental issues. Its methods have been positively correlated tostudent achievement and engagement in learning by the SEERgroup2 and provide a focus on issues investigation as theyrelate to behavior change as described by Drs. Hungerford andVolk in their 1990 paper, ”Changing Learner Behavior ThroughEnvironmental Education3.“

Although this guide is written with the classroom teacher inmind, the methods described here can be used in almost anyteaching setting to make a program more learner-centered,inquiry-based, interdisciplinary, action-oriented, and locallyrelevant. These elements, when used to create MeaningfulWatershed Experiences, will lead to more productive outdoorexperiences, student-directed investigations, and action projectsthat reduce pollution and improve water quality. MWE willassist in increasing student and teacher enthusiasm in coursecontent and assist students in demonstrating mastery ofrequired state content standards.

Choose an Issue

There are a variety of places in the community that can providean engaging setting for outdoor learning. Exploring these areascan be incorporated into a multi-day issue investigation or canbe used for a single day lesson that addresses one or morebasic skills. When exploring the outdoors, you may want to useone or more of the following places and issues for study:

■ The Chesapeake Bay or creek or stream near/behind yourschool;

■ The school building and its impact on the surroundingland/area;

■ A National Wildlife Refuge, state park, or local county park;■ Use of the playground/ball field area and its environmental

impact;■ The health and diversity of undeveloped areas, fields, and

woodlands; ■ Parking lot use and chemical contaminants found there;■ Local populations of wildlife including insects, birds, mam-

mals, reptiles, etc.;■ Activity at feeders or nest boxes;■ Planted/landscaped areas; and■ A plot of land or ”no-mow“ area that has been allowed to

develop naturally.

Issues typically involve an interaction between natural and socialsystems. Components of natural systems include wildlife, plantsand physical environment (soils, atmosphere, climate, etc.).Examples of natural systems include forests, streams, wetlands,water cycle, and meadows. Social systems are created and usedby people to meet their wants and needs. Examples of socialsystems include transportation systems, school buildings, organi-

2 A Guide to Creating Meaningful Watershed Experiences

II. Integrated Watershed Education Model

Integrated Watershed Education Model

Create Organizing andSupporting Questions

Questions are student-generated and driveyour investigations

Investigations

• Hands-On• Multidisciplinary

• Build Concepts & Skills

Choose an Issue

Focus on natural andsocial systems withinyour local watershed

Evaluation

• Determine effectivenessof the project

• Consider alternatives

Student Action

• Restoration• Advocacy

• Service learning

2 Lieberman, Gerald A., Ph.D. and Linda L. Hoody, M.A. Closing theAchievement Gap: Using the Environment as an Integrating Context forLearning. State Education and Environment Roundtable. 16486Bernardo Center Drive, Suite 328, San Diego, CA 92128. Copyright1998 & 2002.

3 Journal of Environmental Education. V21 n3, 1990, 8-21.

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zations, and public utilities. Systems may conflict or complimenteach other. For example, a stream running through the schoolgrounds (natural system) is affected by the local climate (naturalsystem). It is also affected by development in the community(social system). Students can investigate the interactionsbetween these systems in order to identify issues. These issuesbecome the focus for a Meaningful Watershed Experience thatincludes outdoor investigations, classroom work that is tied tocontent standards, and student action.

Create Organizing and Supporting Questions

A typical inquiry-based investigation should start with anorganizing question that will focus the learning. Organizingquestions should include the systems that provide the focus forinstruction. The systems have been underlined in the followingexamples of organizing questions:

■ In what ways does our schoolyard affect the health of theChesapeake Bay?

■ How has development in our community affected the healthof our local river?

■ In what ways does the local river affect the local economy?

Organizing questions should be posed to students at the begin-ning, during, and after investigations have been completed. Thiswill allow students to communicate ways that their understand-ings change as they learn more through experience and explo-ration. At the completion of the project, student responses tothe organizing question should demonstrate an understandingof the major concepts emphasized throughout the variousinvestigations.

Next, teachers will need to facilitate a process that allows stu-dents to generate smaller supporting questions that connect tothe organizing question. These questions allow students toexplore individual systems and to fully understand their inputs,outputs, and integrated parts. Individual lessons should focus ona single supporting question and should provide opportunitiesto gather information in a variety of ways that reflect multiplelearning styles and intelligences. It may take several lessons tofully explore some supporting questions.

For example:Organizing Question:In what ways does our schoolyard affect the health of theChesapeake Bay?

Sample Supporting Questions:■ What activities take place on the schoolyard?■ What lives on the schoolyard?■ What kinds of soils do we have on our schoolyard?■ How healthy is the stream that runs through our schoolyard?■ How does water get from our schoolyard to the Bay?■ What kinds of chemicals enter and leave our schoolyard?

Investigations

A sequence of investigations willlead students through an explo-ration of the natural and socialsystems that are related to theissue being studied. Lesson plansshould focus on individual sup-porting questions enabling stu-dents to acquire and demon-strate skills and concepts. Thesequence of investigations willenhance and develop studentunderstanding of the organizingquestion.

Each lesson plan that is developed should include thefollowing:■ The organizing and supporting question;■ A clear and measurable skill and content objective that istied directly to your curriculum standards;■ A pre-assessment such as a pre-test or question to assesswhat your students currently know; ■ One or more investigations of the question; and■ A summative assessment to evaluate student understandingat the conclusion of a lesson or unit.

Lesson plans may focus on a single discipline or be interdiscipli-nary. Use the following information to incorporate a variety ofdisciplines into ”meaningful“ Bay or stream field experiences.

■ Math — What opportunities are there to collect, organize,and analyze data?

■ Science — In what ways can students engage in hands-onexplorations to collect information and data?

■ Social Studies/Geography — What is the history of the landand people who live there? How is the geography of thearea connected to environmental issues? How are peopleinvolved in the issue or question?

■ Reading — What opportunities are there for students tointeract with various texts: sets of directions; non-fictionbooks, brochures and websites; and literature?

■ Writing — What opportunities are there for students to syn-thesize ideas in writing and to write for a real audience: jour-nal entries; poetry; brief constructed responses; extendedconstructed responses; and persuasive or informative letters?

■ Art — What opportunities are there for students to sketchobservations, to create labeled drawings, or to enhancewritten work?


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Student Action

If students are investigating a local issue, the investigationshould culminate in a service-learning project that addresses orresolves the issue and improves the health of one or more nat-ural systems. Student action may involve advocacy, restoration,or both. For example, if it is determined that the local stream isunhealthy, students might plan and carry out a stream bufferplanting. Students should share the results of their investigationsand action project with the local community, and contact andinvolve local watershed groups and organizations in the project.These groups are happy to assist with Meaningful WatershedExperiences and have connections to an array of resources andtechnical experts.

Organizing a Student Generated Schoolyard Action Project

Use this plan to help students generate project ideas andproposals. This plan allows students to evaluate the schoolyardfor potential project ideas, generate proposals, and presentthem to a discerning audience. Here’s the general plan:

1. Facilitate a schoolyard investigation to allow students to findpotential action project sites.

2. Have teams of students brainstorm action projects to correctproblems on the schoolyard. Have plenty of copies ofresources available for students such as U.S. Fish & Wildlife’sSchoolyard Habitat Project Guide and Chesapeake BayCommunity Action Guide: A Step-by-step Guide to Improving theEnvironment in Your Neighborhood produced by MetropolitanWashington Council of Governments Department ofEnvironmental Programs. In addition, the following websitesmight be helpful:

3. Based on the schoolyardinvestigation, research, andclass discussions, studentteams should collaborativelycomplete all parts of theproposal.

4. Student teams share propos-als with another team. Teamsprovide feedback to eachother and revise proposals.

5. Teams present proposals totheir class. Classmates evalu-ate each proposal using thescoring tool.

6. The top five proposals are shared with a final evaluationteam of teachers, student reps, administration, and groundsmaintenance staff.

7. The team selects projects based on feasibility and curriculumneeds.

8. Teachers use proposals to submit grant requests and to planinstruction.

9. Action projects are carried out and evaluated by students.


Bayscaping Information: http://www.acb-online.org/bayscapes.htmGardening Projects: http://www.kidsgardening.com/Floating Habitats: http://members.aol.com/Tjacmc/index.htmlMiscellaneous Project Ideas: http://www-ed.fnal.gov/help/index.htmlHabitat Projects: http://nwf.org/nationalwildlifeweek/stewards.htmlNative Plant Info: http://www.mdflora.org/General Bay Info: http://www.cbf.orgHabitat Projects: http://www.cee-ane.org/topics/schlyds.htmlInformation and Resources: http://www.mdsg.umd.edu/Extension/valuation/chesapea.htmBird Projects: http://www.chesapeakeaudubon.org/Native Plant Restoration Projects: http://www.wetland.org/General Environmental Info: http://www.webdirectory.com/Ocean Science Info: http://www.vims.edu/bridge/Chesapeake Bay Info: http://www.chesapeakebay.netUS Fish and Wildlife: http://www.fws.gov/Chesapeake Bay Trust: http://www.chesapeakebaytrust.org/

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Additional Action Projects and Resources

Additional projects offered to students, teachers, and communitywatershed organizations are listed below. Details can beaccessed on the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Educationwebsite at www.cbf.org/education.

Bay Grasses in ClassesThis project is a partnership with the MD Department ofNatural Resources and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science(VIMS). It involves students and teachers from Maryland,Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C., in the restorationof underwater grasses (Submerged Aquatic Vegetation) to theBay. Students participating in this project grow the underwatergrass, wild celery (Vallisneria americana), from seed in their class-rooms using a simple aquaculture system. Teachers attend atraining workshop and receive all the necessary equipment,wild celery seed, and supporting curriculum materials. Studentsgrow the grasses for about two months while monitoring waterquality and measuring growth daily. In the spring students trans-plant their grasses, thus restoring wild celery beds to their localwaterways. The ”Bay Grasses in Classes“ project meetsMaryland’s Seven Best Practices for Service-Learning andVirginia’s Standards of Learning. You may visit the MarylandStudent Service Alliance website at www.mssa.sailorsite.net.

Student Oyster CorpsThis project is for schools that have access to the more salinewaters of the Bay and involves students, teachers, and volun-teers in the direct restoration of oysters to oyster reefs neartheir communities. Teachers and students are trained in properoyster care and how to build an oyster raising ”cage“. Theyreceive supporting curriculum activities investigating oysterhistory as well as their ecological functions and values. Theproject culminates with an opportunity for students to planttheir oysters on a sanctuary reef during a day-long, on-the-waterfield trip.

Build Your Own Rain BarrelDid you know that one inch of rain in a 24 hour period willproduce nearly 700 gallons of rainwater runoff from an averagesize home? Use our new rain barrel protocol to create yourown rain catcher so you have a steady supply of water to carefor your vegetable or flower garden. Complete with a samplematerial list and budget, our rain barrel protocol will help youbuild a rain barrel for your school, local park, or home.

Build Your Own Rain GardenUsing native plants suited to your school or home environmentcan slow runoff and improve your local water quality with thishands-on learning tool. A rain garden can be as big or small asyou wish but this handy protocol will provide a sample materiallist and budget along with step-by-step instructions to plan andbuild your rain garden. Stop nutrient runoff from buildingstoday!

Storm Drain StencilingStorm drains were designed to be the fastest and mostefficient way of getting rainwater off streets and parking lots.Unfortunately, the water that flows into your storm draincarries trash and sediment from the street, nutrients in theform of fertilizers, toxics in the form of pesticides, householdcleaners, gasoline, and motor oil. All of the water in the stormdrains ends up in your local stream, river, and eventually, theBay. Stenciling storm drains in your community may discouragepeople from putting harmful things and trash in the drains.

Evaluate

Completed student action projects serve as an interestingcontext for learning. Projects will need to be monitored formonths or even years in order to determine if they actuallyresolved the issue and had the desired effect on the naturalsystem. Students should generate new questions that relate tothe completed project and carry out necessary investigations.As issues are resolved, new investigations should be carried out.If issues are not resolved, new projects may be suggested andcarried out to achieve the desired result.

Summary

Integrated Watershed Education is a strategy employed to meetthe criteria of a Meaningful Watershed Experience. Included asAddendum 1 to this guide is the Planning Projects throughSystems Thinking and Authentic Investigations template. Thistemplate will guide you in defining and identifying systems,developing organizing and supporting questions, creating aninstructional plan, and ideas for organizing a student generatedaction project. Students and teachers can use this template asa planning resource when using the IWE model.


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Included in this section is an example of a unit plan writtenand implemented by teachers at Forest Oak Middle Schoolin Gaithersburg, Maryland. As you follow the template, you

will see an organizing question was identified as well as subse-quent supporting questions, indoor and outdoor investigations,

assessment of skills and knowledge, and state content standardswere addressed. The investigations carried out by Forest OakMiddle School students led to the creation of a Tree Guide andstudent letters recommending improvements that would benefitthe health of the forest.


Supporting Question Investigation Assessment State Standards

What does a healthy forest look like? Read non-fiction text articles from Reading Stance Questions Readingvarious sources

What are the parts of a forest? Read non-fiction text articles from Complete a labeled diagram Readingvarious sources showing the forest layers Science

What role do trees play in the Read non-fiction text articles from Reading Stance Questions Reading and ecosystem? Why are trees important various sources Scienceto the overall health of theschoolyard ecosystem?

How can we estimate and determine Students will use three methods – • Written explanation showing Maththe height of trees? similar triangles, proportional heights, how to use each method

and scaled drawings • Experimental results• Completed calculations• Completed data charts

How can we measure the Students will use appropriate • Written explanation showing Mathcircumference and diameter measuring tools to determine how to use this methodof trees? circumference and algebra to • Experimental results

determine diameter (d = c/pi) • Completed calculations• Completed data charts

How can we estimate the age Read non-fiction text • Stance questions Reading and Mathof trees? • Completed calculations

Perform calculations using and estimatesdata collected

How many healthy trees are on Students will set up 50m2 plots • Maps of plots Math and Scienceour schoolyard? and use random sampling to count • Completed calculations

trees in selected areas of the forest and estimatesand estimate population for the • Completed data chartsentire area

How many dead or dying trees Above(snags) are on the schoolyard?

What’s the ratio of mature/immature Students will estimate numbers • Completed data charts Mathtrees on the schoolyard? of mature and immature trees using • Completed calculations

random sampling techniques as and estimatesdescribed above

III. Integrated Watershed Education Case Study

Organizing Question: How healthy is the forest at Forest Oak Middle School?

What tree species are present on Students will use field Students will create a species list Sciencethe schoolyard? guides and survey the or field guide to the schoolyard LA

forest that includes:• Leaf Sample• Common name• Scientific name• Value to wildlife• Tree data (average height,

number present)

Which trees are most beneficial Read non-fiction text articles Reading Stance Questions Readingto wildlife for food and nesting? from various sources

How many beneficial trees are Students will estimate numbers of • Completed data charts Mathpresent? beneficial habitat trees using random • Completed calculations

sampling techniques as described and estimatesabove

Is our forest healthy? Using information from text and Brief Constructed Response: LAdata collected, students will evaluate Based on information you Sciencethe health of the forest have read about healthy Math

forests and data collected, doyou think that the forest at ForestOak is healthy?

How can we improve the health Using information from text and Extended Constructive Response: LAof the forest? data collected, students will make In the investigation your class Science

recommendations for improving the carried out throughout the year, Mathhealth of the forest you have studied the health of

the forest at your school. Write a letter to your Grade 8 Language Arts teacher that summarizes andjustifies improvements that youwould like to make to improve the health of the forest on yourschoolyard.


Supporting Question Investigation Assessment State Standards

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Major Products

■ Tree Guide to Forest Oak Middle School■ Letter to Grade 8 Language Arts teachers with recommendations

for forest improvements/enhancements setting the stage for fall2003 tree restoration projects

Other Possible Interdisciplinary Connections

■ Trees and Literature – ”Forest Images“ from One Bird Two Habitatsguide

■ Trees as natural resources – ”Forest Products Inventory“ from OneBird Two Habitats guide and PLT Guide

■ Tree structure/function – Science■ Native vs. Exotic trees – Science/Reading

Resources

Project Learning Tree Guide■ http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/pltwild/plt.htm

Chesapeake Bay Foundation Community Forest Buffer Guide■ Published in 2001, this guide is a valuable tool in learning how to

plant forest buffers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.■ For more information contact the Chesapeake Bay Foundation:

www.cbf.org

Web Resources:■ http://www2.champaign.isa-arbor.com/tree-ord/ordprt3d.htm■ http://wiscinfo.doit.wisc.edu/arboretum/woodland/tree_height.htm■ http://www2.champaign.isa-arbor.com/tree-ord/measuringdbh.htm


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NICOLE WENZKE

NICOLE WENZKE

HeadquartersPhilip Merrill Environmental Center6 Herndon AvenueAnnapolis, MD 21403410/268-8816410/269-0481 (from Baltimore metro)301/261-2350 (from D.C. metro)

Maryland State OfficePhilip Merrill Environmental Center6 Herndon AvenueAnnapolis, MD 21403410/268-8833410/269-1870 (from Baltimore metro)301/261-1131 (from D.C. metro)

Pennsylvania State OfficeThe Old Water Works Building614 North Front Street, Suite GHarrisburg, PA 17101717/234-5550

Virginia State OfficeCapitol Place1108 E. Main StreetSuite 1600Richmond, VA 23219804/780-1392

Hampton Roads Office142 West York Street, Suite 318Norfolk, VA 23510757/622-1964

Eastern Shore OfficePort Exchange Building312 West Main Street, Suite B SouthSalisbury, MD 21803410/543-1999

Anacostia River Office725 8th Street, SEWashington, DC 20003202/544-2232

Website: www.cbf.org

E-mail: [email protected]

Membership information: 1-888-SAVEBAY

Chesapeake Bay Program Education Workgroup

STEWARDSHIP AND MEANINGFUL

WATERSHED EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES

The “Stewardship and Community Engagement” Commitment of the Chesapeake 2000

agreement clearly focuses on connecting individuals and groups to the Bay through theirshared sense of responsibility and action. The goal of this Commitment, included below, notonly defines the role of the jurisdictions to promote and assist, but formally engages schools asintegral partners to undertake initiatives in helping to meet the Agreement. This goal commitsto:

Promote individual stewardship and assist individuals, community-based organizations,businesses, local governments and schools to undertake initiatives to achieve the goals andcommitments of this agreement.

Similarly, two objectives developed as part of this goal describe more specific outcomes to beachieved by the jurisdictions in promoting stewardship and assisting schools. These are:

Beginning with the class of 2005, provide a meaningful Bay or stream outdoor experience forevery school student in the watershed before graduation from high school.

Provide students and teachers alike with opportunities to directly participate in local restorationand protection projects, and to support stewardship efforts in schools and on school property.

There is overwhelming consensus that

knowledge and commitment build from first-hand experience, especially in the context ofone’s neighborhood and community.Carefully selected experiences driven byrigorous academic learning standards,engendering discovery and wonder, andnurturing a sense of community will furtherconnect students with the watershed andhelp reinforce an ethic of responsiblecitizenship.

To this end, the Chesapeake Bay ProgramEducation Workgroup seeks to define acommon set of criteria to help the Baywatershed jurisdictions meet the intent of thisCommitment of the Chesapeake 2000Agreement. From these criteria, eachjurisdiction will continue to craft and refineits own plan, tailored to its own population,geography, and fiscal and human resources.

Defining a Meaningful Bay or Stream Outdoor Experience

A meaningful Bay or stream outdoorexperience should be defined by the following.

Experiences are investigative or project-oriented. Experiences include activities wherequestions, problems, and issues areinvestigated by the collection and analysis ofdata, both mathematical and qualitative.Electronic technology, such as computers,probeware, and GPS equipment, is a keycomponent of these kinds of activities andshould be integrated throughout theinstructional process. The nature of theseexperiences is based on each jurisdiction’sacademic learning standards and shouldinclude the following kinds of activities.

Stewardship and Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences – March 8, 2001 Page 2

C Investigative or experimental designactivities where students or groups ofstudents use equipment, takem e a s u r e m e n t s , a n d m a k eobservations for the purpose ofmaking interpretations and reachingconclusions.

C Project-oriented experiences, such asrestoration, monitoring, andprotection projects, that are problemsolving in nature and involve manyinvestigative skills.

C Social, economic, historical, andarchaeological questions, problems,and issues that are directly related toBay peoples and cultures. Theseexperiences should involve fieldwork,data collection, and analysis anddirectly relate to the role of the Bay(or other bodies of water) to thesepeoples’ lives.

Experiences such as tours, gallery visits,simulations, demonstrations, or “naturewalks” may be instructionally useful, butalone do not constitute a meaningfulexperience as defined here.

Experiences are richly structured and basedon high-quality instructional design.Experiences should consist of three generalparts including a) a preparation phase; b) anoutdoor action phase; and c) a reflection,analysis, and reporting phase. These“phases” do not necessarily need to occur ina linear fashion. These include the following.

C The preparation phase should focus ona question, problem, or issue andinvolve students in discussions aboutit. This should require backgroundresearch and student or teamassignments as well as managementand safety preparation.

C The action phase should include one ormore outdoor experiences sufficientto conduct the project, make the

observations, or collect the datarequired. Students should be activelyinvolved with the measurements,planning, or construction as safetyguidelines permit.

C The reflection phase should refocus onthe question, problem, or issue;analyze the conclusions reached;evaluate the results; and assess theactivity and the student learning.

Experiences are an integral part of theinstructional program. Experiences shouldnot be considered ancillary, peripheral, orenrichment only, but clearly part of what isoccurring concurrently in the classroom. Theoutdoor experiences should be part of thedivision curriculum and be aligned with thejurisdiction’s learning standards. Experiencesshould make appropriate connections amongsubject areas and reflect an integratedapproach to learning. Experiences shouldoccur where and when they fit into theinstructional sequence.

Experiences are part of a sustained activity.Though an outdoor experience itself mayoccur as one specific event, occurring in oneday, the total duration leading up to andfollowing the experience should involve asignificant investment of instructional time.This may entail smaller amounts of outdoortime spread over an entire school year.Likewise, the actual outdoor experiences maynot necessarily involve all students in a classat the same time. Rich learning experiences,especially those involving monitoring andrestoration activities, may require timeincrements spread over weeks or evenmonths. A sustained activity will generallyinvolve regularly-scheduled school time andmay involve extended day or weekendactivity.

Experiences consider the watershed as asystem. Experiences are not limited to water-based activities directly on the Bay, tidalrivers, streams, creeks, ponds, wetlands, orother bodies of water. As long as there is an


intentional connection made to the waterquality, the watershed, and the largerecological system, outdoor experiences thatmeet the intent of the Commitment mayinclude terrestrial activities in the localcommunity (e.g., erosion control, buffercreation, groundwater protection, andpollution prevention).

Experiences involve external sharing andcommunication. Experiences should warrantand include further sharing of the resultsbeyond the classroom. Results of the outdoorexperiences should be the focus of school-based reporting, community reporting,publishing, contribution to a larger databaseof water quality and watershed information,or other authentic communication.

Experiences are enhanced by naturalresources personnel. Utilizing the expertiseof scientists and natural resourcesprofessionals can heighten the impact ofoutdoor experiences. This includes both theirparticipation in the classroom and leadershipon-site during outdoor activities. Thesepersonnel have technical knowledge andexperience that can serve to complement theclassroom teacher’s strengths and augmentthe array of resources for the learning.Additionally, these professionals can serve asimportant role models for career choices andas natural resources stewards.

Experiences are for all students. As it iscrucial for all citizens to have anunderstanding of and connection with theirown watershed, an outdoor experience is forall students regardless of where they live.Much of the land area in the jurisdictions isoutside of the Bay watershed; however, it isintended that students residing in those areashave similar opportunities within their ownlocal setting or beyond.

It is also clear that these kinds of experiencesmust be extended to all students includingstudents with disabilities, in alternativeprograms, and special populations. No child

should be excluded from a meaningfulwatershed experience.

Meaningful Experiences across the K-12 Program

It is the intention that every studentsomewhere in the K-12 program will have ameaningful outdoor watershed experiencebefore graduation from high school; however,it is the expectation that these kinds ofactivities will occur throughout formalschooling. Beginning with the primarygrades, the jurisdictions’ academic learningstandards in the social and natural sciencescall for inquiry, investigation, and activelearning. These skills, concepts, and processesincrease in complexity and abstraction,“spiraling” and building throughout theelementary, middle, and high schoolprograms. Likewise, the experiences shouldreflect this progression.

Outdoor experiences should occur at eachlevel, elementary, middle, and high school.These experiences should be defined by thelocal curriculum, be aligned with thejurisdiction’s learning standards, and mirrorthe developmental level of students.

The following example “scope and sequence”describes experiences that should beappropriate for many students in the K-12program.

K-5 experiences should bepredominantly local, school, orneighborhood-based, includingactivities reflecting students’background knowledge, shorterattention span, and physicalcapabilities. Experiences must clearlyrelate to academic learning standardsacross subject areas and reinforce basicconcepts such as maps and models,habitat principles, and the concept ofthe water cycle and watersheds. Caremust be taken with the introduction ordiscussion of complex issues.


6-8 experiences should focus on teamand class projects and investigations.These experiences should reinforceresearch skills requiring the use andanalysis of more authoritative printand electronic resources. Longer-term restoration, monitoring, orinvestigative projects should beconducted locally or on schoolgrounds. Actual student experiencesin or near water may be appropriatefor many middle school students(following school safety guidelinescarefully). Activities such as water-quality testing can be used toreinforce many science, mathematics,and technology skills developed inmiddle school.

9-12 experiences should reflectstudents’ more abstract reasoning anddetailed planning ability. Locallybased activities continue to beimportant, but student watershedexperiences beyond the immediatecommunity will have considerableimpact in meeting academic andstewardship goals. First-handexperiences in or near water should bepart of the implemented curriculum,especially as these experiences relate tothe Earth and biological sciences,concepts developed in civics andgovernment, and attitudes reinforcingresponsible citizenship.

Conclusion

The preceding consensus criteria define a clear vision for bringing the Bay into every classroomand every child out into the watershed in a meaningful way. It will be the goal of every educator,teacher and administrator, to move toward incorporating those experiences that build academicsuccess, reinforce responsible citizenship, and work toward the goals of the Chesapeake 2000agreement. With inspired leaders, committed parents, and supporting communities garneringthe fiscal and human resources to help make this happen, young people will be significantcontributors to healthy, bountiful, and enduring watersheds.

A Guide to Creating Meaningful Watershed...

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