EarthGen

STEM Seminars

Based on a model developed with ESD 112, EarthGen’s STEM Seminars engage teachers in learning about how climate change affects communities across Washington and examining possible solutions. Seminars begin with a “hook” to help anchor learning around relevant issues, such as fires, floods, and droughts. STEM Seminars blend science content and social impacts with effective NGSS teaching strategies.

Teachers analyze data with University of Washington scientists who share their first-hand experience conducting climate research. Local specialists also share regional perspectives on climate issues and present approaches to address climate change locally. For example, at a training on Climate Change and Shellfish, an elder from the Swinomish Tribe relayed the importance of shellfish to native culture, sustenance, and the local economy. In each STEM Seminar, teachers benefit from structured planning time, which helps them plan how to apply what they learned into their classrooms. EarthGen supports teachers to take what they learn in STEM Seminars and implement activities with their students.

Professional Learning Communities (PLCs)

EarthGen facilitates professional learning communities for teachers to deepen their understanding of complex topics, build community, and receive advice and feedback from colleagues. ​​In these sessions, which focus on topics such as climate justice and climate action, teachers connect asynchronously and synchronously in virtual workshops. The goal is that they will deepen their own knowledge and practice, apply their learning to their classrooms, and share their experiences with their colleagues.

The Climate Justice League is a PLC developed in partnership with ESD 112 that focuses on the intersection of climate change and environmental justice. Now offered across the state, teachers in the Climate Justice League learn how climate justice connects with issues in their own community and explore how to engage their students in taking action for change. Educators learn from the perspectives of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color who are leaders in climate justice work. With support from the CJL facilitators and the other educators in their cohort, teachers plan and implement lessons around relevant climate justice issues to their communities.

EarthGen Learning Resources

In collaboration with educators from school districts across the state, EarthGen has developed environmental learning resources that are driven by the Next Generation Science Standards. Resources include flexible science units such as Monarch Mystery, Breathing Easier, and Energy Matters, that engage students in hands-on learning activities in their school community and strengthen their science literacy and 21st century skills, such as critical thinking, collaboration, and communication.

Available in Spanish and in both virtual and in-person formats, EarthGen’s learning resources bring climate science learning directly to students in ways that are culturally relevant and aligned to their interests. EarthGen prioritizes partnering with schools and school districts where students have been historically underserved by environmental science education, and teachers receive free professional development and implementation support.