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Education and Outreach

GSWA fosters environmental awareness and promotes environmental education for all ages. We help teachers bring environmental learning to life in the classroom, by presenting a three-dimensional watershed model to students, that vividly illustrates how individual and group actions affect the water quality of our lakes, rivers, and streams, introducing the concepts of point and nonpoint source pollution. GSWA has delivered this program to dozens of schools, reaching over 1500 students.

We educate the educators with relevant teacher workshops. In 2005 we diversified our Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) workshops by introducing a School Yard Habitat Development workshop, which shows educators how to use their school grounds as areas for wildlife and learning.

In 2004, Watershed Association staff began offering a wide variety of educational programs for the public and GSWA’s nearly 2,000 member households. The goal of these family-friendly programs is to introduce participants to the natural and cultural history of the area in an interesting and hands-on way. Events take place at locations throughout the watershed, enabling attendees to visit and learn about new places in the area.

The Association provides environmental information to area residents and officials through its programs, website, and newsletter.

Check out our Event Calendar.

 

Programs and Workshops for Educators 2010-2011
Hazel England leading educator workshop

Great Swamp Watershed Association will again facilitate two popular and useful workshops for area educators this season. Workshops are for K-12 formal and non-formal educators alike. They focus on core content correlated activities that educators can use back in the classroom or Nature Center to teach across the curriculum. They encourage critical thinking skills and focus on sustainability topics such as water conservation, the water cycle, biodiversity, habitats and more. Workshops provide activities relevant to the local environment and will be linked with the amazing online resources of Verizon’s thinkfinity.org.

Each six hour hands-on workshop, led by GSWA’s own experienced naturalist educator, Hazel England, will provide participants with activity guides chock full of relevant and engaging content that can be interwoven into existing curriculums. Workshops are $15, and include breakfast. They confer six professional development credits too! For more information email Hazel at hazele@greatswamp.org. All workshops take place at Great Swamp Watershed Association offices at 568 Tempe Wick Road, Morristown.

 

Wonders of Wetlands Workshop
Saturday, November 13, 2010 , 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

WOW! is an instructional guide for educators that provides a resourceful and creative collection of wetland activities, information, and ideas. The WOW! Guide includes over 50 hands-on multidisciplinary activities in lesson plan format, extensive background information on wetlands, ideas for student action projects, and a wetlands resource guide. WOW! has been called the most comprehensive introduction to wetland issues and definitions. This workshop is great for educators who field trip to, have access to, or are considering creating their own wetland site.

 

Project WET Workshop with Additional Great Swamp Focus
Saturday, March 26, 2011, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

This workshop is an interdisciplinary, supplemental water education program for formal and non-formal educators, K-12. It is hands-on, action packed and informative! Educators will learn by doing, experiencing activities they can use to teach all kinds of water concepts from the water cycle, to water properties, aquatic ecosystems, and water pollution prevention. Participants will receive the curriculum and activity guide, a collection of innovative, water-related activities that are hands-on, easy to use and up to date.

 

More...

Publications
DEP Comparative Risk Study
Conservation Tips
BioBlitz 2007
BioBlitz 2009
Bike Tour 2009
Breakfast Briefings
Winter Roads Maintenance
Be Heard! Citizen Advocacy Program Booklet (pdf)