The Project Learning Tree curriculum uses hands-on activities to engage K-8 youth in learning about the environment. Image by Page Hutchinson, VDOF.
Many of you are familiar with Project Learning Tree, more commonly called PLT, but do you know that the State Coordinator will come to your chapter to lead PLT training specifically for your chapter? This training will count toward CE and give you many wonderful activities that you can use or adapt to use in your education and outreach.
I think you will appreciate the mission of PLT since it’s a close parallel to the VMN program: Project Learning Tree advances environmental literacy and promotes stewardship through excellence in environmental education, professional development, and curriculum resources that use trees and forests as windows on the world.Project Learning Tree is committed to creating a future where the next generation values the natural world and has the knowledge and skills necessary to make informed decisions and take responsible actions to sustain forests and the broader environment.
PLT training consists of a 5-6 hour workshop arranged on the day of your choice. I will lead you through some of the PLT activities found in the K-8 Environmental Education Activity Guide so you have a feel of how the activities flow and how to lead them for others be it students or the general public. After each activity we debrief and talk about how to make the activity and discussion relevant to different populations or scenarios. Each person participating will receive their own Guide to take with them which has 96 hands-on, interactive activities.
Some examples of activities are “Birds and Worms”, “Every Tree for Itself”, “How Big Is Your Tree?”, “The Forest of S.T. Shrew” and “Field, Forest and Stream”. Sound intriguing?
The cost for this training is $10/person. That’s it! And this cost includes receiving the Guide. We normally take a 30-45 min. lunch break with everyone simply bringing their lunch unless the chapter wants to provide lunch.
If your chapter is interested in PLT training contact me, Page Hutchinson, page.hutchinson@dof.virginia.gov. We’ll decide on day that suits you and I’ll take it from there.
