San Mateo Environmental Learning Collaborative
A K - 8 Environmental Literacy Experience
Location: San Mateo County Office of Education STEM Center, Redwood City
Sponsored By: San Mateo County Office of Education; Ten Strands; Sand Hill Foundation; CalRecycle and a host of additional partner organizations, including California Project WET.
Register: Teacher teams of 3–4 are encouraged to apply here before May 28, 2017!
Description: The San Mateo Environmental Learning Collaborative is a unique partnership that results in increased environmental literacy and academic engagement for students, and success for teachers.
The San Mateo Environmental Learning Collaborative provides San Mateo K–8 teachers with the opportunity to participate in professional learning institutes focused on teaching the Next Generation Science Standards using project-based learning and the local environment.
“I realized that we have to do science to teach science. Teaching this unit has reignited my passion for teaching.”
Since the San Mateo Environmental Learning Collaborative first formed, more than 140 teachers have learned what NGSS requires them to do and how to do it—while also fostering students’ enthusiasm and natural curiosity about the environment around them.
“This experience both reinforced my knowledge of the standards and deepened my knowledge of the standards. It also provided me with many resources that can help in this process. I felt empowered.”
Bringing teachers together with our partners—the San Mateo County Office of Education, local providers of environment-based education, and curriculum experts—teachers are supported in creating units of study for the classroom that are comprehensive, standards-based, and student-centered.
Using existing resources including California’s Environmental Principles and Concepts (EP&Cs), the Education and the Environment Initiative (EEI) Curriculum, and instructional resources from partners, teachers connect students to science and the environment in effective and engaging ways.