4-H Exploring Your Environment Project

Program Contact

Autumn Britt, 4-H Program Manager
509-588-7817 • autumn.britt@wsu.edu

Exploring Your Environment projects is designed to teach middle school aged youth about the environment and their impact on the world. Projects focus on environmental stewardship and living a sustainable life.

Objectives

Youth will:

Use scientific thinking and abilities to explore natural and man-made environments
Increase awareness of career potential in environmental science
Develop an understanding of the components of Ecosystem Services
Demonstrate an understanding of the components of Environmental Stewardship
Affect change in local community by having a voice in environmental issues

A person with their back to the camera carries a backpack while standing on a sandy path through a natural area.

4-H Exploring Your Environment Curriculum

Available from the Extension office or online.

Exploring Your Environment – Ecosystem Services

Exploring Your Environment – Ecosystem Services provides an introduction to ecosystem services and explores topics including pollination, soil, provisioning services, and ecotourism. Grades 6-8.

Exploring Your Environment – Earth’s Capacity

Exploring Your Environment – Earth’s Capacity focuses on environmental stewardship and sustainability and issues such as transportation choices, waste management, composting, recycling, and natural resources. Grades 6-8.

Exploring Your Environment – Facilitator Guide

Exploring Your Environment – Facilitator Guide provides training, supplemental activities, and resources to help the facilitator deliver the Exploring Your Environment curriculum. Grades 6-8.

Outdoor Curriculum Level 1: Hiking Trails

Hiking Trails includes shelter selection, Leave No Trace camping skills, outdoor cooking and environmental awareness and appreciation.

Outdoor Curriculum Level 2: Camping Adventures

Focuses on hiking for a day. Learn about clothing needs, packing a daypack, reading topographic maps, and orienteering skills.

Outdoor Curriculum Level 3: Backpacking Expeditions

Focuses on being on the trail for extended periods of time. It includes clothing needs; tent setup; using backcountry stoves; basic nutrition; menu planning for multi-day hikes; personal hygiene & basic first aid.

Outdoor Curriculum Helper’s Guide

Enables helpers to facilitate the teaching of the curriculum. Utilizing the experiential learning model, the guide targets technical, organizational, problem solving, safety and communication skills.

Wildlife Science Level 1 Digital Download

The Wildlife Science curriculum is for youth who enjoy learning about wildlife and exploring their habitats. Learn about mammals, birds, fish, and herptiles and the role humans play in conservation and wildlife management. Level 1 introduces the wildlife groups: mammals, birds, fish, and herptiles. Youth will learn about the similarities and differences among these groups and then study each one.

Wildlife Science Level 2 Digital Download

The Wildlife Science curriculum is for youth who enjoy learning about wildlife and exploring their habitats. Learn about mammals, birds, fish, and herptiles and the role humans play in conservation and wildlife management. In Level 2, youth explore more complex wildlife topics, such as habitats, conservation, and signs of wildlife.

Wildlife Science Level 3 Digital Download

The Wildlife Science curriculum is for youth who enjoy learning about wildlife and exploring their habitats. Learn about mammals, birds, fish, and herptiles and the role humans play in conservation and wildlife management. Activities in Level 3 are divided into chapters based on how youth might use the information they’ve learned—as a homeowner, resident of a watershed, food and fiber producer (farmer), mayor, teacher, or legislator. This manual is advanced and includes significant research and development of a wildlife habitat.

Wildlife Science Facilitator’s Guide Digital Download

The Wildlife Science curriculum is for youth who enjoy learning about wildlife and exploring their habitats. Learn about mammals, birds, fish, and herptiles and the role humans play in conservation and wildlife management. The Facilitator’s Guide is for all three levels. This guide contains activity facilitation and answers as well as a listing of the Next Generation Science Standards by activity.

Washington 4-H Records, Forms, and Guides

For youth members

Coming soon!

For adult helpers and club leaders

Coming soon!

State Earth Science and Environmental Education Project Resources

Helpful Resources

Activity Ideas

Educational Wildlife Bingo Game

This fun bingo game comes with enough pieces for 2-6 players and promises to make learning about Wildlife fun! Players select picture boards and place a chip over the corresponding image as cards are read aloud by the caller. Each card has educational facts about wildlife. The first person to cover the selected pattern and yell bingo wins!

Washington Specific Reference Material

None at this time.

Other Reference Material

From 4-H Programs

National 4-H Environmental Sustainability

Taking action to address climate change and sustainability with more than one million environmental projects completed.

I Am An Ecosystem: Elementary Microbiology

I Am an Ecosystem introduces youth to the invisible world of microbes. Through this curriculum, youth engage in hands-on activities across six lessons to explore the importance of microbes to healthy ecosystems, healthy food, and healthy bodies.

Bird Behavior – Nebraska 4-H Outdoor Education Series

Why do ducklings follow their mothers? Do birds talk to each other? Do birds eat other birds? Learn everything you need to know about birds from this manual.

Insectigator – Nebraska 4-H Outdoor Education Series

The Insectigator encourages families to go outside and investigate wildlife around them. It provides an opportunity for youth to explore and investigate the natural world we live in. It was created for beginning entomologists, especially those between 8 and 11 years old. It can also be used with younger youth with an adult. Anyone who has an interest in insects is encouraged to use this manual, regardless of age.

Wildlife Conservation 1: The Worth of Wild Roots – Nebraska 4-H

Enjoy 68 pages in full color. Wildlife Conservation I describes what wildlife conservation is about; the history of wildlife conservation in the United States, including the tale of bison and passenger pigeons; and the values of wildlife to people, including the wealth of services from nature, an area we are rapidly learning more about.

Wildlife Conservation 2: Living Wild in an Ecosystem – Nebraska 4-H

Wildlife Conservation II sneaks through wildlife habitat, how size and shape of habitat patches affect various wildlife species, what makes wildlife number go up or down, and how wildlife survives within natural communities and ecosystems. You can do it! You have a wild heart! And if you don’t, you’ll have fun anyway. As in other manuals in this series, there are several projects that you can do to learn about wildlife and to become involved in helping give wildlife a lift.

Wildlife Conservation 3: Managing in a World with You and Me – Nebraska 4-H

Wildlife Conservation III ties concepts form all three manuals in the series together. It deals with the interface between people and wildlife, including why and how we manage wildlife and the agencies responsible. Threatened and endangered species, hunting, wildlife damage management, invasive species, and related topics are included.

From Higher Education Institutions

Environment and Ecology – Penn State University

This resource includes lesson plans on Ecosystems; Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources; Endangered, Threatened and Extinct species; and Watersheds and Wetlands.

WIldfire Lesson Plans – Penn State University

Using educational flyers, videos, and smartboard technology, these lesson plans help students explore wildfire prevention and investigate how controlled burns are used for habitat restoration.

Meadow Repository – Penn State University

Meadows play an important role in our ecosystem and have multiple benefits for wildlife and humans.  Whether your project is a small backyard or a community park of several acres, your contribution to enhancing the environment will be significant.

White-tailed Deer Lesson Plans – Penn State University

These lessons focus on the impact of deer on the forest ecosystem. The activities are designed for youth grades 6-12. The rationale for the lessons is the need for better education and understanding about the issues surrounding deer abundance.

By studying deer biology and deer interactions with their habitat, students will gain a better appreciation for the animal as well as the importance of deer population control. Youth will understand that an over-abundance of deer can have significant negative impacts on forest ecosystems.

Educator Generated Lesson Plans – Penn State University

These lesson plans cover Earth Sciences, Forestry/Natural Resources, Water, and Wildlife.