June 2006

This bi-monthly newsletter is for you. Let me know what type of information you would like to see. I invite everyone to submit an environmental related article or blurb that would be of interest to PLT educators and supporters.

Thank you for all your support,
Jennifer Seitz
Florida PLT Coordinator

FL PLT News

Florida Educator Honored by National PLT

Dr. Florie Babcock of Florida Southern College has been named a 2006 Outstanding Educator Honoree by National Project Learning Tree. Thank you for your commitment to education.

PLT Student Pages Available in Spanish

The Student pages in the PreK-8 Guide have been translated into Spanish! The pages are available in booklet form. If you are interested in a copy contact Jenny at jacohen@ufl.edu.

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Upcoming PLT Events and Workshops

June 10: PLT hands-on booth at Brevard County Parks and Recreation’s "Save It" Celebration.
June 22, June 29 & July 6: PLT PreK-8 Educator Workshop (only need to attend one) at Nature’s Classroom in Thonotosassa (Hillsborough County). To register, contact Karen at Karen.Johnson@sdhc.k12.fl.us.
June 24 & August 26: PLT and WILD PreK-12 Educator Workshop (only need to attend one) at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Monroe County. For more information, contact Ben at (305) 451-1202 or benjamin.burr@dep.state.fl.us.
July 21: Energy and Society Workshop sponsored by Florida Power and Light in Nassau County. Workshop is open to educators that teach grades 3-8. Register by July 7, 2006 by emailing Jenny Seitz at jacohen@ufl.edu.
August 2: Energy and Society Workshop for 3-8 Educators in Manatee County. Location TBA. For information, contact Jenny Seitz at jacohen@ufl.edu.
August 5: PreK-8 Educator Workshop as part of the Girl Scout Leader Conference in Seminole County at the Community United Methodist Church in Casselberry. All educators are welcome to attend. Preregistration is required. For registration information, contact Jenny Seitz at jacohen@ufl.edu.
September 16: PreK-8 Educator Workshop at Austin Cary Memorial Forest. $10 fee (at the door) covers lunch and refreshments. To register, email ufplt@ufl.edu or call (352) 338-4575.

For more information about these and other events, please see the Calendar of Events on our Web site.

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Annual PLT Awards

An Educator of the Year, Facilitator of the Year, and Partner of the Year are chosen by the Florida PLT Steering Committee to recognize an outstanding individual or organization in each of these categories. The recipients must meet high standards for helping with workshops or using PLT in the classroom. Congratulations to the following individuals for their excellent contributions to PLT!!

Educator of the Year: Summer Zephyr (A.D. Harris High)

Facilitator of the Year: Karen Johnson-Folsom (Nature’s Classroom)

Business Partner of the Year: Packaging Corporation of America

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Conferences / Workshops

Educator’s Butterfly Workshop

The Florida Museum of Natural History's McGuire Butterfly Center has invited guest speakers from around the country to speak about butterflies. Topics include: infusing environmental education into the K-8 classroom, bat - tiger moth interaction, butterfly faces and insect places, silver-spotted skippers: architects & frass-flingers, and project butterfly wings: youth citizen project. Workshop is scheduled for Tuesday, June 13 from 8:45a.m. - 4:30p.m. There is a $35 registration fee (includes lunch). For registration forms and other info contact: Dr. Jackie Miller at jmiller@flmnh.ufl.edu or (352) 392-5894 x480.

Awakening the Dreamer – Changing the Dream

Awakening the Dreamer – Changing the Dream, an interactive symposium developed by the Pachamama Alliance, is sponsored by the Florida Solar Energy Center. These two questions lie at the heart of the symposium, "Where on Earth are we going? What can we do about it?". Real sustainability, based on a high level of planetary cooperation, seems elusive, but it now required for an amicable survival of humanity. The symposium is Sunday, June 11 from 10:00a.m. - 6:00p.m. For more information contact JoAnn Stirling at (321) 638-1014 or JoAnn@fsec.ucf.edu. A $25 registration fee includes lunch, refreshments, and symposium materials on a CD.

Summer Water Institute for Elementary and Middle School Teachers

July 20, 21 and 22, 2006, 9a.m. – 4p.m. all days, at the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve in Ponte Vedra Beach. Register for one, two or three days by contacting Lori Dennard at ldennard@sjrwmd.com or (386) 329-4563. Registration ends on July 10, 2006. Limited stipends are available on first come basis.

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Grants/ Contests / Awards

Libri Foundation Offers Children's Book Grants for Rural Libraries

The foundation works with an applicant library's Friends of the Library or other local organizations and seeks to encourage and reward local support of libraries. The Friends, or other local Supporters, can contribute from $50 to $350, which the foundation matches on a two-to-one ratio. Thus, a library can receive up to $1,050 worth of books through the foundation's Books for Children program. Libraries are qualified on an individual basis. Libraries should be in a rural area, have a limited operating budget, and an active children's department. Please note: Rural is usually considered to be at least thirty miles from a city with a population of 40,000 or more. The foundation awards grants three times a year. The next deadline is July 15, 2006.

Entries Invited for Technology in Education Essay Contest

Teachers, administrators, parents, and students may enter the Samsung Electronics America "Hope for Education" essay contest by writing a 100-word essay on why their school and students are in need of digital technology in the classroom. The program will award one Grand Prize of $200,000 in Samsung merchandise and Microsoft software, and twenty First Prizes of $60,000 each in Samsung merchandise and Microsoft software. All contest winners will be selected by a panel of qualified judges from leading academic and editorial communities.

The essay contest is open only to legal residents of the fifty United States and the District of Columbia. Participants should nominate a public or state-accredited private elementary, middle, or high school in their community. Home schools, colleges, universities, and vocational/trade schools are not eligible for nomination.

Target Store Grants

Through its Store Grants, Target supports local giving in the categories of Arts and Reading. Eligible applicants must be nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status, schools, or units of government. Most grants average between $1,000 and $3,000. Funding is limited to the communities in which Target does business. Because applications will be reviewed as they are received, applicants are encouraged to apply early. Applications for Target Store Grants are available at local Target stores and online through the Target Web site.

National Gardening Association Invites Applications for School Gardens Program

To be eligible for the 2006 Healthy Sprouts Awards, a school or organization must plan to garden in 2007 with at least fifteen children between the ages of 3 and 18. The selection of winners is based on the demonstrated relationship between the garden program and nutrition and hunger issues in the United States. The program will present awards to twenty-five schools or organizations. Each will receive a $200 gift certificate to Gardener's Supply Company; a literature and curriculum package from NGA; and NGA Supporter benefits for one year.

Applications Invited for Jordan Fundamentals Public School Grant Program

The Jordan Fundamentals Grant Program recognizes outstanding teaching and instructional creativity in public schools that serve economically disadvantaged students. Applicants to the program must be public school teachers or para-professionals working with students in grades one through twelve and be employed by an accredited public school where at least 50 percent of the school's student population is eligible for the free or reduced school lunch program.The application process includes developing an original lesson plan that involves students. Grants of $2,500 will be awarded. Deadline is June 30, 2006.

Captain Planet Foundation

Captain Planet Foundation awards are between $500 and $2,500 for schools and nonprofit organizations that develop innovative environmental projects for youth that promote cooperation, planning, and problem-solving skills. Remaining 2006 Application Deadlines: June 30, September 30, and December 31.

Road Scholar Teacher Award

Active educators (teachers, principals, superintendents, school nurses and librarians, guidance counselors at public, private and charter schools) are eligible to apply for one of three awards in the amount of $7000. Each entrant will submit a 250-word Lifelong Learning Matters essay to our Road Scholar Challenge, telling us why lifelong learning is important to that person.

CVS Community Grants Program

CVS/pharmacy Community Grants program is accepting proposals for programs targeting children under the age of 18 with disabilities that address any of the following: health and rehabilitation services; public schools promoting a greater level of inclusion in student activities and extracurricular programs; and creating opportunities or facilities that give greater access to physical movement and play. Deadline is October 31, 2006.

Edith Stevens Groundwater Educator Award

Award to recognize educators who understand the importance of groundwater, motivate others to protect groundwater, and lead by personal example. Anyone actively involved with the implementation and delivery of groundwater education programs is eligible. Deadline is July 14, 2006.

Angels in Action Awards

Georgia-Pacific's Angels in Action Awards Program will recognize children who are involved in exemplary community service projects in age categories 8-15 years old and 16-18 years old. One outstanding awardee will receive $15,000 for "Program of the Year". Two grand-prize winners (one from each age category) will receive $10,000, and ten finalists (five from each age category) will receive $1,000. Deadline is October 1, 2006.

GreenWorks!

Do you have an idea for an exciting service-learning or community action project for your students but you don't have enough funds to implement it? Why not apply for one of PLT's GreenWorks! grants? GreenWorks! offers educators the opportunity to apply for grants to implement community action and service-learning projects. Across the country, PLT trained educators teaching in both formal and non-formal settings are eligible to apply for and receive GreenWorks! grants.

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Resources

Florida Stormwater Education Toolkit

This toolkit provides activities that teachers can use to explore water resources with their students. The guide provides over ten hands-on activities that can get students excited about water.

Solutions for your Life

Sponsored by the University of Florida's extension service, the site provides consumers and industry professionals with a one-stop source of information on family life, gardening, agriculture, the environment and other topics. Massive in size and scope, Solutions for Your Life is a gateway to extension, research and education resources from UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, or UF/IFAS.

A Reason for the Season

National Geographic classroom activities about reasons for seasons with embedded links for illustrating Earth's seasonal positions around the Sun. Learn the long and short of the changing of the seasons, then self-test using the cosmic map.

New Movie: Hoot

The National Wildlife Federation, Walden Media, and New Line Cinema film "Hoot" is based on the Newbery Honor-winning book by Carl Hiaasen. In this funny, fast-paced new movie, three Florida middle school students fight to save a group of endangered burrowing owls nesting on the property where a brand new Mother Paula's All-American Pancake House is about to be built. Web site offers teaching tools, materials, and discussion forum.

Plants and People of China Web site

Teachers looking for a practical resource that integrates Chinese language, cultural studies and environment may be interested in the recently published Plants and People of China web site. The image-rich web site is full of activities that balance online time with collaborative group discussion back in the classroom. Further useful Asian Studies support material can be downloaded from the partnership's general web site. Once there, go to "visit discovery trails" to download numerous booklets relating to traditional uses of plants in a number of Asian countries.

NASA Spinoffs

NASA publishes a book called "Spinoffs" that details how space research has benefited each of our lives. Visit the web site for specific examples.

Coolfuel Roadtrip

Think it’s impossible to travel across American without using any gasoline? One man, his dog, and a camera crew have done it! They traveled 16.000 miles across 30 states in vehicles powered only by "coolfuels". These fuels are everything but gasoline. See a plane powered by ethanol, a Hummer using biodiesel and a solar canoe in the 18 part television series. Visit the web site for local listings, pictures of coolfuel vehicles and downloadable lesson plans.

ARKive Education

This UK-based education charity promotes the conservation of nature and the appreciation of biodiversity. The materials are geared toward youth ages 7-11. The educator web site includes pictures, lesson plans, project ideas, and curriculum links.

Clean Air Campaign

This non-profit Georgia organization created interactive lessons that touch on various subject areas involving air quality. To download lesson plans, visit the web site and select "For Schools" and "Clean Air Lesson Plans".

Go Diving on Your Computer

NeMO is a seafloor observatory at an active underwater volcano known as Axial. The web site reports research results from expeditions at sea and lets visitors take virtual tours on the ocean floor. Free curriculum materials, movies and animations for grades 6-12 are also available.

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Interesting Tree Fact #11

Melaleuca trees, also known as punk trees or paperbark tea trees, are native to Australia and grow to about 80 feet tall. Its bark is whitish, spongy, peeling, and in many layers. Its leaves are to 5 inches long, alternate, evergreen, simple, short-stalked, narrowly elliptic. Melaleuca's white flowers are small and crowded in bottlebrush-like spikes at branch tips. The fruit are short, cylindrical or squarish, woody capsules with many tiny seeds.

In Florida, however, Melaleuca is a pest, especially in the Everglades and surrounding areas, where the trees grow into immense forests, virtually eliminating all other vegetation. Melaleuca grows in terrestrial as well as in completely aquatic situations. The Everglades, the mostly treeless "river of grass", in some places has become the "river of trees", a completely alien habitat to the plants and animals that have evolved to live in the glades. During the 50 years since its introduction into the state, Melaleuca has taken over hundreds of thousands of acres of Everglades, threatening the very existence of this internationally known eco-treasure.

In response to this invasive plant, the University Of Florida has begun T.A.M.E. Melaleuca, The Areawide Management and Evaluation of Melaleuca. It is an areawide pest management program designed to promote long-term, biologically-based melaleuca management. Through partnerships with public agencies and private land managers, the goal is to demonstrate the effectiveness of an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach for controlling melaleuca in the United States and beyond.

For more information about TAME Melaleuca, visit http://tame.ifas.ufl.edu/.

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Credits

Information in this newsletter came from the NAAEE, Botanic Gardens Conservation International, and LEEF North Region newsletters, and the National PLT and SIFT listservs.