Happy first day of school, Greenpoint! This year, the local conservationists at Newtown Creek Alliance are bringing the creek to the curriculum as part of the National Wildlife Federation’s Greenpoint EcoSchools initiative.
NCA will pioneer its new STEM Urban Ecology curriculum in the four Greenpoint Public schools: PS 31, PS 34, PS 110, and MS 126. The learning modules and field trips, designed for elementary and middle school students, cover Flora and Fauna relationships, invasive and native species, topography, water and soil quality, ecological health and legacy and ongoing pollution sources.
Each lesson will culminate in a “design based applied learning project,” and NCA staff will serve as expert guides, leading classes through related activities and offering guest lecturers in the classroom.
Newtown Creek Alliance is not the first superfund steward in the city to use New York’s polluted waterways as a resource for environmental education. This curriculum was originally created by the Gowanus Canal Conservancy and the Urban Memory Project then adapted by NCA.
According to NCA, “The lessons were reviewed and tested with assistance from the National Wildlife Federation Eco-Schools with funding provided by the New York State Office of the Attorney General and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation through the Greenpoint Community Environmental Fund.”
You can find the full STEM Newtown Creek Urban Ecology Curriculum here. NCA welcomes feedback on all lessons and materials.