MEMBER
SCHOOLS
What is a 4-H Wildlife
Stewards Member School? 4-H Wildlife Stewards Schools are Where
it Happens! 4-H Wildlife Stewards Member Schools also
- work in partnership with
4-H Wildlife Stewards to plan, develop, maintain and sustain wildlife
habitat sites on school grounds that benefit the entire community
by enhancing educational opportunities for students and by saving
a place for wildlife in our neighborhoods;
- are places where students
can develop both their appreciation of nature and the outdoors and
their knowledge about water cycles, food chains, and biodiversity;
- are a place for students
to observe, study, and take action to protect their own environment;
and
- provide a place for wildlife
– from butterflies to songbirds – and a place where students
can observe, study, and take action to protect their own environment.
4-H Wildlife Stewards Habitat
projects help students and teachers to meet Oregon’s science education
benchmarks by offering learning opportunities right outside the schoolroom
door.
Steps to Become a
4-H Wildlife Stewards Member School
To become a 4-H Wildlife
Steward Member School, interested schools should complete and submit
a 4-H Wildlife Stewards
Member School Application. 4-H Member Schools must also
commit to developing a habitat area that is sustainable over the long-term.
This commitment includes:
- Committing 3-5 years to
the project;
- Enrolling participating
students as 4-H Junior Wildlife Stewards;
- Organizing a “habitat
team” of students, teachers, administrators, maintenance staff,
parents and community members;
- Obtaining school district
and principal approval;
- Identifying enthusiastic
teachers to participate in the project;
- Providing a meaningful
volunteer experience for the 4-H Wildlife Stewards team; and
- Certifing the habitat project
through the 4-H Wildlife Stewards Project Sustainability Program;
- Ensuring that the project
is a student project and students are involved in the planning and
creating of the Habitat Education Site.
Support for 4-H Wildlife
Stewards Member Schools
Oregon State University
Extension Supports 4-H Wildlife Stewards through:
- Access to education/curriculum
kits and supplies. All curriculum is tied to the Oregon Science Education
benchmarks
- A quarter annual newsletter
- On-site 4-H
Wildlife Stewards Curriculum training for teachers and
volunteer leaders
- Special enrichment programs
for students and teachers
- 50 hours of volunteer
service from each trained 4-H Wildlife Stewards
- Opportunities to apply
for 4-H mini grants
- Public Relations and media
support for promoting your project to your school, parents, and community
- Certification of your
Habitat Education Site with OSU Extension
- School Wildlife Habitat
Signage
- Summer 4-H Junior Wildlife
Stewards Camp for students
Participating schools
have found that some of the benefits include:
- a place to learn about
the environment as interconnected series of relationships;
- an opportunity for hands-on
learning in all areas of the curriculum;
- an overall increase in
the diversity of play opportunities;
- a reduction in school
ground violence among students;
- an ecologically and aesthetically
improved and chemical-free landscape; and
- a model for environmental
rehabilitation and community building.
By involving parents and
community volunteers in these school projects local communities also
benefit. The benefits of community naturalization - citizens working
together to create healthier natural areas by planting native trees,
shrubs and wildflowers on public landscapes - include:
- enhancing environmental
health by rehabilitating degraded landscapes;
- providing habitat for
native birds, butterflies and other insects;
- increasing biodiversity
by using native plant species;
- learning first-hand about
the natural world and ecological processes which support it;
- strengthening community
ties by fostering a sense of cooperation and instilling feelings of
pride and stewardship; and
- building a sense of individual
empowerment - people learn that they can make a difference.
|
