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Because the District works hard to protect Durham County’s natural resources, we know that without educating the public about their environment, our other programs and projects would be for naught. That’s why the District is dedicated to encouraging and sponsoring a strong and active Environmental Education Program for all age groups.
Students and Teachers….
The Durham Soil and Water Conservation District is committed to the education of our young people about nature and the environment. The District offers a number of educational opportunities and events throughout the school year for pre-K – 12th grade students. Contests, events, presentations, activities, camps and more are an ongoing part of the school year. Teacher’s workshops are provided to help them utilize environmental related lesson plans and activities in their classrooms. Teachers are also encouraged to incorporate environmental education into their curriculum through awards. Teacher’s can find information on all programs and happenings in the Annual Teacher’s Newsletter.
Adults….
Our commitment to Environmental Education doesn’t stop after graduation though…we offer a number of adult environmental education programs, activities and awards. Our staff will is available upon request to speak to civic groups/clubs about a variety of environmental/natural resource related topics.
Staff members will be happy to assist you in planning your nature related curriculum with a library of lesson plans, classroom project ideas and/or classroom presentations.
For more information on some of our resources and programs for students and adults, read on below….
Student/Teacher Resources
* Teacher's Newsletter
* Classroom Presentations
* Poster, Essay and Public Speaking Contests
* Envirothon
* Resource Conservation Workshop
* Teacher's Workshop
* Teacher of the Year Award
* NC Big Sweep
* Environmental Ed Learning Library
Adult Resources
* Pond Clinic
* Conservation Awards
** Education Staff Bios
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Student and Teacher Resources / Activities
* Teachers Newsletter
The P.A.A.W.S for Environmental Education Newsletter an environmental education newsletter for Teacher and Educators provided by the Durham Soil and Water Conservation District. It is guide to District programs and events, natural resource related topics and contests. Please email jbooks@co.durham.nc.us to join the e-mail list and be sent the newsletter when it comes out or download the current version here.
· 2010-2011 P.A.A.W.S. for Environmental Education, fall semester edition [pdf]
* Classroom presentations
Classroom presentations for preK-12th grade classes. Activities and lesson topics can be geared towards current curriculum being studied. Popular activities include; soils and erosion, wildlife, the Enviroscape Model, Big Sweep and watersheds
* Contests
Every year the NC Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts sponsors contests that foster students' attitude of stewardship for our natural resources. The contest offer an opportunity to develop and enhance students' creativity through art, writing and public speaking skills. The poster contest is for third, fourth, fifth and sixth graders. The essay contest is for sixth grade students and the speech contest is for seventh and eighth graders.
Entries for the Durham SWCD’s Poster, Essay and Public Speaking Contest are due by February 10, 2011. Judging will take place in late February at which time the winners will be announced. Presentation of awards will take place at the District’s Annual Conservation Awards Banquet in late spring.
Poster - 2011 Contest [pdf]
Essay - 2011 Contest [pdf]
Public Speaking - 2011 Contest [pdf]
Click here for a list of the 2010 Poster, Essay and Public Speaking Winners [pdf]
* Envirothon
Sponsored by the NC Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts and the Durham Soil and Water Conservation District, the Envirothon program is a natural resources knowledge and ecology field day/competition event for five-member high school and middle school teams. Resource subject areas are: Wildlife, Soils, Forestry, Current Environmental Issues and Aquatics. For more information on Durham County’s Envirothon program please visit our Envirothon webpage here. Coming Soon...
* Resource Conservation Workshop
Sponsored by the NC Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, the Resource Conservation Workshop (RCW) is a week of intensive study and participation of high school students in a wide range of conservation topics to give them a taste of future career opportunities. Students are housed in NCSU campus dormitories under the guidance of Live-in counselors. Scholarships and awards are available and presented to students under several awards programs. The Durham District is committed to sponsoring one student from applications of rising sophomores, juniors and seniors who have demonstrated an interest in natural resource conservation.
* Teacher’s Workshop
The Durham SWCD offers an annual teacher’s workshop for Project Food, Land and People in August of each year. Project Food, Land & People (FLP) is a 55 lesson plan curriculum that promotes approaches to learning to help students better understand the interrelationships among agriculture, the environment and people around the world. The lessons are designed for pre-K to 12th grade and many are correlated to the NC Standard Course of Study. Teacher’s can receive CEU’s and Educators can receive EE certification hours from attending the workshop. Additional workshops can be held throughout the year if schools or teacher groups are interested.
* Teacher of the Year Award
The Durham SWCD is committed to recognizing the outstanding conservation education efforts of our county's teachers. Open to all Elementary, Middle and High School Teachers in Durham County. The nominee is someone who shows concern, scope and orignality by integrating environmental education into his/her curriculum thoughout the school year. Nominate yourself or an outstanding teacher you know. Applications are due by April 1st of each year.
· Teacher of the Year Award, Environmental Education – Application [pdf]
* Big Sweep
Part of the International Costal Clean up and the NC Big Sweep, the Durham Big Sweep event is an opportunity to encourage students to be better stewards of the environment by participation. Big Sweep organizes trash clean ups of Durham’s waterways and watersheds. Schools are challenged to participate by cleaning up their school grounds or nearby park. Students can earn much needed community service/volunteer hours by participating. The cleanup can be a learning tool for classes.
Big Sweep’s official day is the 1st Saturday in October each year, but Durham County volunteers can hold clean up events anytime during the months of September and October. For more information about this year’s event, please visit the Big Sweep webpage here.
* District Environmental Education Learning Library
Thanks to a generous grant from Target, the District has a Learning Library for preK- 3rd grade. Books and more can be checked out by teachers and educator for use in their classroom. Full information and list of books can be found by visiting the Learning Library webpage.
Those interested in joining an email list to receive updates and information on the above student and teacher resources and activities can email Jennifer at jbrooks@co.durham.nc.us
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Adult Resources / Events
* Pond Clinic
Each Spring, the Durham District sponsors and hold a Pond Clinic for the general public. Topics covered include pond construction, pond management, weed control, pond wildlife and more. For more information or to be included on the mailing list to receive an invitation, email Lisa at lmarochak@co.durham.nc.us
* Conservation Awards Banquet
Each Spring the Durham SWCD will hold an annual Conservation Awards Banquet to honor and reward winners in its educational contests, such as Poster, Essay, Public Speaking and Envirothon. Other awards for outstanding achievements in several areas are presented as well. They include:
· District Urban Conservationist of the Year Award – Recognizing outstanding leadership and achievement in conservation. Open to any individual, organization or corporation responsible for a conservation project in an urban setting. Nominations are open to the public and the winner will be chosen by the District’s awards committee and judges. Applications can be downloaded below.
o Durham County Urban Conservationist of the Year Award [pdf] (coming soon...)
· Gold Star Award – Recognizes and outstanding conservation partner of the Durham SWCD. Recipient is chosen by the District staff and Board of Supervisors.
· Big Sweep Group of the Year Award – Recognizes outstanding participation and achievement during the Durham County Big Sweep clean up. Recipient is chosen by the Durham County Big Sweep Coordinator.
· Durham County Farm Family of the Year Award - Recognizes outstanding farming family that has incorporated conservation practices into their operation. Recipient is chosen by the District staff and Board of Supervisors.
· Durham County Forester of the Year Award - Recognizes outstanding forestry steward. Recipient is chosen by Durham County’s NC Forest Service.
Those interested in joining an email list to receive updates and information on the above adult resources and activities can email Lisa at lmarochak@co.durham.nc.us
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** Education Staff Bios
The Durham Soil & Water Conservation District has 2 Environmental Educators on staff to help teachers understand and teach their students about natural resources and the environment. Whether you teach Pre-K, 12th grade or anyway inbetween, we can help you with a variety of nature related lesson plans and hands-on learning projects.
· Jennifer Brooks, Soil Conservationist & District Education Coordinator, specializes in 3rd grade through 12th grade with emphasis on the Conservation Contests and the Envirothon program, jbrooks@co.durham.nc.us
· Lisa Marochak, District Administrative Officer, focuses on engaging pre-K through 3rd grade in environmental education and coordinating the adult education activities/events, lmarochak@co.durham.nc.us
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