Resources
The following programs are available to help teachers and communities develop environmental education programs. This list includes a variety of teacher training programs that are state and privately sponsored, and generally are free to educators, as well as curriculum supplements for the classroom. For additional resources, you can search the Virginia Naturally partners.
Air Quality for Science Teachers
An overview of air quality concepts related to SOL 6.6(g)
Ag in the Classroom, sponsored by the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, is a curriculum targetted to fourth-grade students. Topics include agricultural economics, the geography of crops, how science has changed agriculture, and other current issues. Computer software, maps, textbooks, tours and speakers are available.
Annual Rediscover Virginia Conference, sponsored by DEQ and The Wintergreen Nature Foundation. Rediscover Virginia! The Wintergreen Nature Foundation presents a unique educator seminar on the natural and cultural history of the Commonwealth in early August. Learn new ways to teach the 4th grade Science SOLs and incorporate environmental education in classes other than science.
Heritage Education Program, sponsored by the Department of Historic Resources and state preservation groups, provides The Heritage Workbook, a curriculum featuring history, architecture and archaeology, as well as teacher workshops, Virginia Archaeology Week, and on-site "digs."
Love-A-Tree is a program that provides supplemental curricula for teachers and educators based on the Standards of Learning. The packet includes a teacher resource guide complete with lesson plans and activities, a poster on the John Smith Trail and a video recounting John Smith’s historic exploration of the Chesapeake Bay. .
Pollution Solutions is a curriculum supplement about litter and pollution prevention based on the Standards of Learning for grades K-12.
Project Learning Tree is a nationally developed program that provides curriculum supplements about forest communities through six-hour teacher workshops. Lesson plans are correlated to the new Standards of Learning and use science, language and social studies skills. Project Learning Tree is sponsored jointly by the Virginia Department of Forestry, Virginia Tech College of Forestry and Wildlife, and the Virginia Forestry Association.
Project Underground, sponsored by the Richmond Area Speological Society, is a collection of 20 activities with an emphasis on caves and related karstlands -- their biological, geological, hydrological and historical diversities and values.
Project WET is a professionally developed water education program for educators. The K-12 supplementary curriculum addresses topics such as atmospheric water, surface and ground water quality, cultural and historic uses of water, and contemporary management issues. Lessons are correlated to the new Standards of Learning. The 500-page guide is available through six-hour workshops. Water resources trunks, which include a groundwater model, maps, videos and activities, are available on loan. To schedule a training workshop for groups of 20 or more, contact
Project WILD is a nationally developed program that provides curriculum supplements and training about wildlife and habitats. The guide contains more than 80 interdisciplinary lessons. Project Aquatic WILD features lessons on aquatic ecosystems. Both interdisciplinary programs are correlated to the new Standards of Learning. Free six-hour workshops are sponsored by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and the Virginia Izaak Walton League.
Virginia Energy Education Development Project offers a unique program of teacher and student training as well as the latest information on all forms of energy.
Virginia Museum of Natural History exhibits, traveling educational kits, and programs about natural sciences reach students and adults throughout Virginia, including a summer institute for fourth- and fifth- and sixth-grade teachers. Headquartered in Martinsville with a branch at the University of Virginia, each site provides special programming for its area.
Virginia Science Standards Institute is a week-long summer program for fourth- and fifth- and sixth-grade teachers that provides a wealth of science expertise and resources from Virginia's museums and state agencies.
Virginia State Parks offer a variety of educational services including activities designed to involve students in field activities and investigations.
Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts sponsors a variety of watershed education projects, including youth scholarships, a youth conservation camp and Envirothon program for high school students.
Virginia Tech College of Forestry and Wildlife Resources offers teacher workshops, student training, field trips/site tours, and speakers on natural resource topics, including trees, forests, fisheries and wildlife. Contact: College of Forestry and Wildlife Resources, 324 Cheatham Hall, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24060, (540) 231-7670.