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 Pedal to Power Calgary classroom goes carbon neutral

  Sometimes good things come in the mail!
ACEE receives a generous donation from a youth led company 
 

Connecting students to the natural world
Teacher Paul Kelba, writes about his struggles to get his students outside 


 

Cenovus Energy Environmental Education Leadership Clinic

Do you need time to plan an environmental education project in your classroom, school or district? This is the opportunity for you! The leadership clinic is a fully funded (including sub-coverage), four day clinic for four team members to develop a plan to achieve your goal - we offer professional development to help your team build an effective and achievable plan.

 

Applications are now being accepted with a deadline of June 8, 2012. For more information and to download the application, visit http://abcee.org/leadershipclinic/.  

 

Environment Week June 3-9     

What a great time of year to focus on the environment! Here are some links to help you join in the celebrations with your class.
  • Green Stop - register your event, download resources to help  promote your Green Stop and find an event in your community.
 
  • World Environment Day June 5 - This is an UN recognized day. This year the theme is Green Economy: Does it include you? A great opportunity to explore green careers with students. ECO Canada has lesson plans, speaker directory and a program directory. You have to register to access the resources, but it is free.  
  • Clean Air Day June 6 - Have you heard of an airshed? Use this map to find your airshed
    • Air - Our Invisible Connection is a resource booklet from Alberta Environment has activities for grade 7-9.
    • Interested in the indoor air quality in your school? Health Canada created this toolkit for school boards and administrators to identify and improve air quality in schools.
  • World Oceans Day June 8 - Living in Alberta we do not often think about the ocean! Use this day to explore oceans with your students. 
    • Dr. Seuss activity booklet has some very simple activities for students in grade k-6
    • Bridge webpage is full of teacher reviewed resources covering all aspects of our oceans      
 

Share your passion with the education community! 

The Global, Environmental and Outdoor Education Council (GEOEC) of the Alberta Teacher's Association is looking for new members of their executive.
It is an opportunity to give back to your professional community and make sure global, environmental and outdoor education remains a priority for education in Alberta. 

If you are interested, please contact the president Jessica Scalzo. 
 

Alberta Past, Present and Future..... 

Alberta has changed profoundly in the last 100 years, our population has exploded and our use of the land has intensified.

These two resources help you and your students look at land use in Alberta and make decisions on what you would like to see in the future
  • Alberta Tomorrow is an educational tool that uses cutting edge GIS technology and satellite imagery to simulate the future effects of human activities on Alberta's wildlife habitat, ecosystem services, and natural resource production. Users are challenged to sustainably manage Alberta's ecosystems.
  • Regional Planning in Alberta is a 12 minute YouTube video detailing the changes Alberta has undergone in the past 100 years. A great introduction to Alberta Tomorrow. 
 

International Day for Biological Diversity - May 22      

The theme this year is Marine diversity, but why not explore biological diversity in your own backyard? Here are a few local resources taken from the Encana Environmental Education Resource database:
  • Burgess Shale - this resource from Parks Canada fits with the grade 7 Planet Earth curriculum
  • Hinterland Who's Who - in depth descriptions and information about wildlife in Canada. Learn to make your own Hinterland video!
  • It's Not Easy Being Green - this video conference from Alberta Parks helps your class explore the re-introduction of the Northern Leopard frog in southern Alberta
  • Real World Ecosystems - an on-line learning program from GreenLearning.ca that looks at the diversity of ecosystems in Alberta. Links to the science 7  
 

Oil Sands PD Program for Teachers    

Inside Education is inviting teachers from across the country to see an important chapter of Canada's energy story come to life by joining the Canadian Oil Sands Education Program. This six-day program is designed exclusively for Canadian classroom teachers - not only will you experience first-hand oil sands development and the related issues, but you will also explore best practices in teaching and learning about the oil sands.

These fully funded opportunities always fill up fast, apply now.
 

Water and Agriculture in Alberta   

Waterlution Calgary Hub is hosting another fabulous water learning  opportunity May 12 - Digging Deeper: Exploring Water and Agriculture.

This full day field trip is only $25.00 and covers all activities and transportation from Calgary to various sites in the Cochrane area.  
Quick Links
Interview with Richard Louv
Ducks Unlimited Canada recently interviewed Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods. The video is 8 minutes long and Richard offers suggestions on how to get kids outside. You can hear the full interview here.
Whale FM
Listening to whale sounds is amazing! You can help marine scientists match similar whale sounds so they can figure out what they are saying. Join in on this citizen science project here.  
BirdJam
Spring has sprung and the birds are singing! Learn to identify birds by their sounds on this site. There is a picture, recording and written call and song description for each bird.   
Skeptical Science - Climate Change
This site presents the myths around climate change and then science that disputes the myth. The arguments can be viewed at a beginner or intermediate level and are very well laid out. View the myths sorted by popularity here
For more information visit:  www.abcee.org
Questions or comments? Please contact christina@abcee.org.