For interested K-12 teachers (solicited from throughout the US and the world):

Penn State CHANCE Field Program

 This Penn State accredited program will help pre-service teachers earn undergraduate credits and in-service teachers earn graduate credits or professional development hours. Two courses run in sequence:  Global Climate Change: Sustainability of Select Tropical and Aquatic Ecosystems (online; March-May,2012; 3-credits) with A Field Practicum in Panama (July 6-22, 2012; 1-credit). The first course is online and will prepare participants for actual field work (second course) at selected biological field stations run by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) throughout Panama.  Field research activities in mangroves, sea grasses, coral reefs, and tropical rainforest will be used to explore ways in which the biodiversity of a wide variety of habitats is being affected by climate change and the ways in which conservation and sustainable development can be practiced in order to improve the global environment. As participants progress through the program they will also learn how to apply their research experiences to inquiry-based lesson planning and receive on-going support to assist them in translating field experiences to research and stewardship in their own schoolyards and/or community environments.

Apply by March 1, 2012

See:  http://www2.lv.psu.edu/jxm57/panama2012/index.html and www.chance.psu.edu

Contact Jacqueline McLaughlin at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Focus on 2-4 Environment and Ecology
Date: March 8, 2012
Location: Pennsylvania Department of Education
333 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA
Room: Honors
Time:  8:30 AM — 3:30 PM

Reading to Learn the Content: Renewable Resources: (Grades 2, 3 and 4) – A new professional development workshop for classroom teachers currently teaching grades 2-4, is being offered through the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Office of Environment and Ecology.  The main focus of the work will be renewable resources (e.g., seasons, water, trees, agriculture, human impacts on these resources).

For more Information Renewable Resources Workshop

To register for this workshop click on this link Registration for Renewable Resources Workshop

***If the workshop is filled and you would like to be put on a waiting list, please email Cheryl Watts at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

In the event of inclement weather, please go to the above website the evening before   or by 6:30 AM the day of the workshop for any cancellations.  In the event there are    delays at individual school districts the workshop times will not change unless reported  on the website.

You will need to pay for parking for the day.   If you can car pool that would be helpful.  You should be able to park at the Chestnut Street Garage which is attached to the
Department of Education Building. Guide to Downtown Parking

Dress comfortable for the day.

 Need additional information please contact Patricia Vathis, Environment and Ecology Curriculum Advisor, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   or Cheryl Watts, Support Staff, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(717-772-0842).

Focus on 1-4 Environment and Ecology
Date: February 22, 2012
Location: Pennsylvania Department of Education
333 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA
Room: Honors
Time:  8:30 AM — 3:30 PM

A professional development workshop for teachers of grades 1^st through 4th is being offered through the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Office of Environment and Ecology.  The workshop will cover terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, including watersheds, adaptation, change over time, and real vs. make-believe.

For more Information Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecosystems Workshop

To register for this workshop click on this link http://www.research.net/s/6GHMNWH

***If the workshop is filled and you would like to be put on a waiting list, please email Cheryl Watts at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

In the event of inclement weather, please go to the above website the evening before   or by 6:30 AM the day of the workshop for any cancellations.  In the event there are    delays at individual school districts the workshop times will not change unless reported  on the website.

You will need to pay for parking for the day.   If you can car pool that would be helpful.  You should be able to park at the Chestnut Street Garage which is attached to the
Department of Education Building. Guide to Downtown Parking

Dress comfortable for the day.

 Need additional information please contact Patricia Vathis, Environment and Ecology Curriculum Advisor, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   or Cheryl Watts, Support Staff, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(717-772-0842).

Connecting Environmental Education, Service-Learning, and Community Action
Grants up to $1,000 available!

Apply for a Project Learning Tree GreenWorks! grant! 

For more information visit www.greenworks.org for an application form and more details.  Application deadline has been extended to December 23, 2011.

Keep America Beautiful, Inc., the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization, today announced the launch of “Recycle-Bowl,” the first comprehensive nationwide recycling competition for elementary, middle and high-school students. Recycle-Bowl was created to provide students with a fun, interactive way to learn about waste reduction and environmental responsibility through in-school recycling.

For more information go to Recycle Bowl Competition

New Greenhouse IPM Lessons!  The Pennsylvania Integrated Pest Management Program (PA IPM) at Penn State, working with the NE IPM Curriculum Working Group, has developed 5 new lessons for using IPM in a greenhouse setting.  PA IPM is looking to pilot a minimum of three the lessons in at least one school this fall.  Lessons cover the following content areas: Environment and Ecology; Science and Technology; Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening; History; and Economics.  If you are interested in learning more about the lessons and piloting them, please contact Amber Brunskill at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 814-865-7994.

The Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Office of Environment and
Ecology, Northeast Sustainable energy Association, Sustainable Development Fund and a core of Pennsylvania teachers developed a curriculum to be used in Grades Five through Eight.

This curriculum examines the environmental and scientific concepts of energy sources, forms, transformations, efficiency and heat transfer. Students experiment with electric generators powered by wind, water and light. They also conduct tests heating model buildings with different types of insulation (thermal and radiant barriers) and sealing leaks.

By applying system concepts of goals, inputs, processes, outputs and feedback, students propose energy improvements at home and compose an action plan at school that could, if implemented, reduce the unwanted side effects of the school’s current energy use.

Construction guides for instructors to development classroom experimentsand energy demonstrations is included in each unit. Assessment rubrics and expected student responses to worksheet and classroom activities are supplies as well.

A DVD was developed for the curriculum by GreenTrex that introduces the alternate energy concepts and then looks at real life examples of each type ofalternate energy and how it is being used in Pennsylvania.

                ENERGY THINKING ALTERNATE ENERGY CURRICULUM GUIDE (PDF)

PA CleanWays and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful are inviting all Pennsylvania schools and school districts to join in the exciting and renewed Pennsylvania Litter Free School Zone program.  Recently announced, PA CleanWays and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful have formally joined forces to promote illegal dump cleanups, anti-litter education, and beautification projects to make their work with local partners and volunteers more effective.  Litter Free School Zone

The Chesapeake Bay Program is happy to announce the launch of BayBackpack.com, an online resource for teachers and environmental educators to engage students in hands-on learning about the Chesapeake Bay and its local waterways. Bay Backpack provides educators with the necessary resources to give their students a Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE), which are extensive projects that allow students to gain a deep understanding of environmental issues in the Chesapeake Bay and its local streams and rivers. To learn more about Bay Backpack, visit www.baybackpack.com . Interested educators can also follow Bay Backpack on Twitter @baybackpack to receive additional education-related news and resources.