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Programs for Schools Programs at your school-we come to you! Teachers: Not to worry, we can bring our hands-on programming to your school! We have multiple sites around the Washington, DC metro area, including our mobile programs, The M/V Half Shell or The Rolling Rainforest. Our educators will hit the road to deliver these unique hands-on programs in your classroom or facility. Whether you want to get prepare students prepared for a shipboard program or just provide a different type of exciting learning experience, our school-based programs can fill those needs. Some of these programs are one-time programs or can be coupled together, others are multi-experience programs. Programs available may include: Shad Restoration Program
As another spring approaches, students throughout the Washington D.C. region will be helping return American shad to the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers. Since 1996, over 50 schools from Washington D.C., Alexandria, Fairfax, Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties have raised American shad in their schools and released them at sites below Great Falls, at Leesylvania State Park, and in the upper Anacostia River. The fish swim over 12,000 miles in their lifetime, leaving their release site in the Potomac River to swim out to sea and then returning to where they were born to lay their own eggs. Click here for more information on the Shad Program
The Rolling Rainforest: Created for underserved elementary schools in the Washington, DC area, the Rolling Rainforest serves thousands of students and teachers who face transportation challenges and tight operating budgets. This mobile outreach initiative also visits community centers, health clinics, festivals, and museums throughout the nation. DC-Schoolyard Stewards: DC-Shoolyard Stewards Program is a project- based learning experience for students in the Washington, DC public middle schools that is centered on the question, "What is stormwater runoff pollution, and how can we prevent it?" Through the program - a joint project offered by Living Classrooms of the National Capital Region and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) - students become "Schoolyard Stewards" as they work in their own neighborhoods and schoolyards to investigate this important urban environmental issue, examine their own attitudes and behaviors, and seek solutions to this problem. Schoolyard Stewards staff members join teachers in a cooperative effort to bring science curriculum to life through a series of programs for each classroom. Activities may include: neighborhood trash reduction, storm drain marking, rain barrel creation and implementation, school recycling programs, installation of bike racks and trash cans, community outreach, schoolyard greening, and a field trip on the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers aboard the historic Chesapeake Bay buyboat Half Shell. Park Outreach Programs: In a two to three-hour experience at a Maryland or Virginia State Park, students rotate through approximately ten stations, two taught by Living Classrooms' staff and the remaining by school teachers and chaperones (you teachers will receive these easy self-run directions prior to scheduled date). Lesson topics may include: Water Quality, Wetlands, Buoyancy, Birds, Plankton, Macro-invertebrates, Seine fishing, Pond Exploration, Invasive Species, Orienteering and more. Preschool Programs: In January 2009, LC-NCR began regular science instruction to 14 classes with the Apple Tree Early Learning Childhood Academy’s 3-4 year old students. The educators work with teachers, Principals, and curriculum specialists to give students engaging experiences that spark inquiry and science exploration. The lessons follow closely with the Apple Tree and Early Childhood Academy's curriculum and give students a unique glimpse into life as a scientist. They also include cross-curricula aspects: art, reading, and math. We can come to your school too! The cost of these programs vary depending on length of program and numbers of classes involved. Black Maritime History and the Oyster: Learn the skill of caulking and find out how many African Americans used maritime skills to pursue their dreams of freedom. Dissect oysters and discover their importance to the Chesapeake Bay and the African-American workers, from a time when this bivalve was a national and international obsession. Chesapeake Bay and River Ecology: Learn about what a watershed is and the watershed in which we live. Investigate the issues that are impacting the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. This program uses a unique hands-on activity and Living Classrooms' 3-D model of the watershed. Fish Fun and Adaptations: Learn about the different types of fish in the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers and their importance to aquatic food webs. This lesson is great for younger ages (pre-school through 3rd grade) but can be used for all grades. Live fish will be provided when possible to study and identify. These students may also have the opportunity to use a dichotomous key to identify fish species. Students will create their own imaginary fish with features suitable for specific diets and habitats. History of the Anacostia: Explore life of the Nacotchtank Indians and the development of Anacostia, bringing as history comes to life. Students will build simulated Nacotchtank long houses and move through a timeline of history. Plankton: Learn about the different types of plankton and their importance to aquatic food webs. Live plankton samples will be provided when possible. Students will view plankton under magiscopes and a microscope that is hooked up to a television screen. The students will also have the opportunity to use a dichotomous key to identify plankton species. Water Quality: Test two samples of water, one a known source such as the school drinking water and one, an unknown source (Anacostia River or Potomac River water). Students will perform wet chemistry tests on these samples to test the temperature, dissolved oxygen, nitrates, phosphates, pH, and fecal colliform. They will make a hypothesis about where the unknown sample originated. After-School Programs: After-school programs can range in length from one-day per week to Monday through Friday. The focus can be one theme or multiple themes throughout the year, monthly, or weekly. Topics range from environmental science, math, and social science as related to individual neighborhoods and local surroundings. The cost for after-school programs ranges depending on the length of the program. Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience: Couple two of these classroom sessions with a shipboard experience to provide your students with a "Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience". Pre and post trip activities will be utilized to assist with preparing the students for their upcoming trip on board Half Shell and reinforcing topics covered on the trip. To book your next school based program, please contact: |
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