Join New England Science & Sailing (NESS) for a workshop series as we dive into the best practices for implementing meaningful watershed educational experiences in alternative learning schools. This will include three virtual speakers throughout April, and then one in-person workshop on April 27th. Connect with a community of educators who are passionate about igniting curiosity for environmental stewardship and scientific investigation, interact with speakers in environmental education fields, explore free resources to support your STEM curriculum, and hear from the NESS B-WET Teacher Cohort as they share their findings throughout the past 3 years. Thanks to NESS’s B-WET grant provided by NOAA, this professional development opportunity is available for free.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

April 3rd, 5:00-6:00 pm est on Zoom - Nina Quaratella and Hannah King, New England Science & Sailing  

Kickoff the speaker series with Nina Quaratella, Director of Programs, and Hannah King, Education Specialist, as they dive into the best practices NESS Educators and the B-WET Teacher Cohort use when blending experiential learning in alternative school settings and how they impact the social-emotional learning (SEL) skill growth in students. 

April 17th, 5:00-6:00 pm est on Zoom - Val Perini, The Trustees

Learn from Val Perini, a Regional Education Manager in the North Shore with The Trustees, as she shares her experiences when working in outdoor education and how to connect issues such as climate change and culture to programs at The Trustees’ conservation sites. Explore free resources to use when developing your own field programming, and reflect on essential elements that support students' investigation while designing environmental action projects. 

April 24th, 5:00-6:00 pm est on Zoom - Maggie Cozens, Connecticut Sea Grant 

Join Maggie Cozens, The Long Island Sound Study Outreach Coordinator with CT Sea Grant, as she shares their work facilitating place-placed learning and empowering students to investigate and take action in their watersheds. 

April 27th, 10:00 am-3:30 pm est – In-Person Workshop at NESS Stonington

Visit us in Stonington, CT! Join NESS and B-WET cohort teachers for training on the upcoming release of the NESS B-WET Climate Change & Ocean Acidification Lesson Plan. Hear from NESS Educators and B-WET cohort teachers on their best practices used to engage and inspire students when teaching environmental education. After a morning at NESS, get your feet wet and your hands muddy as we travel to a nearby monitoring site to explore a local estuarine environment and gather water quality data. Following the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) framework, this in-the-field training will provide hands-on experience to activities and lessons you can translate into your educational programming.

Agenda:

10:00 Arrival at NESS  (72 Water Street, Stonington, CT)

10:15 Presentation from NESS Educators & B-WET Teacher Cohort on Research Findings

11:00 Climate Change Lesson Plan Training 

12:30 Lunch Break

1:30 Barn Island Salt Marsh: Water Quality Monitoring Training 

3:30 Wrap Up & Reflection

Hope to see you for any or all of these workshops. Thank you!