Learning Resources

Environmental Education Resources

As a collaborative we are committed to supporting ongoing place-based learning online, at home or in the classroom.
Follow the links below to lessons, virtual field trips and more.

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Other AMAZING online resource libraries

Boulder's EMovement: The resources listed below are intended to provide teachers and families with access to high-quality environmental education lessons and activities that students can do from wherever they are.
North American Association for Environmental Education: This site includes a list of resources designed to keep learners of all ages interested and engaged during the crisis, from hands-on activities and lesson plans to websites, virtual tours, and more.

Engaging your School, Pod, Scout or Homeschool Group

Many of our partners are offering in person programming.

Poudre Learning Center: Bring students out to the Poudre Learning Center to extend classroom learning to the outdoors. Students can apply what they have learned to what they see in the natural world with hands-on engaging inquiry-based activities. Poudre Learning Center Sign Up
The Gardens on Spring Creek : Offers standards based age appropriate in person and virtual educational programming participants on topics of plants and pollinators.
Rocky Mountain Raptor Program: Request an educational program with live ambassador raptors for learners of all ages!
Larimer County Natural Resources: Offers educational programming for families, school field trips, & special request programming for groups of 10 or more.

Spending time in Nature

Audubon Rockies: Free activities, lesson plans, and other resources for connecting youth to nature.
Big Green: Distance learning/gardening activities for families & teachers
City of Fort Collins Natural Areas: Nature walks and mindfulness activities for all ages
CSU Environmental Learning Center: Posting daily nature challenges on their Facebook Page.
Generation Wild: Need some inspiration? Here are 100 things to do outside before you are 12 (it is fun for adults too)
Poudre Heritage Alliance: Self-guided field trips along the Poudre River are active place-based learning adventures. Suitable for teachers to assign their students or as a fun family excursion!
Poudre Learning Center: (Field Experience) Our trails are open to families from sunrise to sunset to explore the outdoors. We are located right off the Poudre River Trail, so make sure to stop by during one your bike rides. Field experiences are also available to extend classroom learning to the outdoors. Poudre Learning Center Sign Up
Project Learning Tree’s Nature Activities for Families: Ages 3-15 activities that are fun, easy to do, and can be completed at local parks, around the home, and in your own backyard.
The Gardens on Spring Creek : Sensory nature walks for all ages.
Larimer County Natural Resources: Nature-based educational programs for all ages.

Play and Exploration

Generation Wild: Need some inspiration? Here are 100 things to do outside before you are 12 (it is fun for adults too)
Poudre Learning Center: Family exploration events are held the last Saturday of each month (January-October) to encourage families spending quality time in nature learning together.
Project Learning Tree’s Nature Activities for Families: Ages 3-15 activities that connect families with their local parks, around the home, and in your own backyard.
The Gardens on Spring Creek : Early childhood education video story times, crafts and scavenger hunts for your backyard.

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math)

CSU Environmental Learning Center: Girls Advancing Scientific Progress (GASP!) is posting weekly science activities.
Fort Collins Museum of Discovery: Posting new activities each day on their Daily Discovery Blog that explore science, music and history. You can also view Daily Discovery activities on Pinterest.
Poudre Learning Center:
- Caring for Our Watersheds is an education program that engages students in preserving and improving their local watersheds through student-led solutions (Grades 9 -12). Implementation funds and cash awards are available!
- Summer Science in Nature Camps for students going into 6th-8th grade during the fall school year. This is a day camp at the Poudre Learning Center where students spend four days with peers, mentors, and professionals in STEAM fields exploring activities outdoors and introduced to projects in art, science, and math. Dates are TBD.
- (Field Experience) Bring students out to the Poudre Learning Center to extend classroom learning to the outdoors. Students can apply what they have learned to what they see in the natural world with hands-on engaging inquiry-based activities. Poudre Learning Center Sign Up

Plants and Pollination

Big Green:
- Colorado Gardening Specific Resources
- Educator Resources
- Big Green at Home: Monthly lessons to engage young learners at home or in the classroom on food, food systems and garden education.
City of Fort Collins Natural Areas: Activities, field guides and nature hunts for elementary students and their families to find new ways to experience nature right in your backyard.
Project Learning Tree’s Nature Activities for Families: Ages 3-15 activities that are fun, easy to do, and can be completed at local parks, around the home, and in your own backyard around plants, trees and their neighbors.
The Gardens on Spring Creek : K-5 level lessons on plants, pollination and gardening.

Animals and Insects

Audubon Rockies: Free activities, lesson plans, and other resources for connecting youth with birds and their habitats.
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies: Fun bird activities for inside and out and tons of video programming for kids of all ages. Check out the schedule on their Events Calendar and their Facebook page.
City of Fort Collins Natural Areas: Activities, field guides and nature hunts for elementary students and their families to find new ways to experience nature right in your backyard.
City of Loveland: Study the health of a river, or pond or irrigation ditch, by investigating how many and what type of macro-invertebrates are living there.
Generation Wild: Find links to virtual tours, web cams, and ideas for engagement from National parks, art museums to the Denver Zoo!
Northern Colorado Wildlife Center: Check out great videos about local wildlife rescue on their YouTube Channel.
Rocky Mountain Raptor Program: Explore a variety of videos about raptors and raptor rehabilitation on our YouTube Channel. Tune in every Wednesday afternoon at 4 pm mountain time for a new live stream.

Ecosystems

Audubon Rockies: Free activities, lesson plans, and other resources for connecting youth with sagebrush ecosystems.
City of Fort Collins Natural Areas: Activities, field guides and nature hunts for elementary students and their families to find new ways to experience nature right in your backyard.
Project Learning Tree’s Nature Activities for Families: Ages 3-15 activities on the roles of trees in the ecosystem.

Geology

Larimer County Natural Resources: Learn all about geology through these great videos from right here in our backyard.
The Poudre River - PLC and Train Museum Collaboration Video - learn more about erosion, weathering and deposition by exploring the Poudre River at the PLC virtually.
Poudre Learning Center:
- The Well Watch Program is an interdisciplinary earth's systems program providing K-12 students with a close-to-home, concrete, opportunity to investigate real science issues surrounding groundwater and surface water. In doing this, students investigate how our geological layers provide the foundation for our water supply.
- (Field Experience) Bring students out to the Poudre Learning Center to extend classroom learning to the outdoors. Students can apply what they have learned to what they see in the natural world with hands-on engaging inquiry-based activities. Poudre Learning Center Sign Up

Water, electricity and resources

Audubon Rockies: Free activities, lesson plans, and other resources for connecting youth and adults to their energy resources.
City of Fort Collins Natural Areas: Activities, field guides and nature hunts for elementary students and their families to find new ways to experience nature right in your backyard.
Poudre Heritage Alliance: Our digital archives have audio and video resources for learning about Western water law and historic, cultural, and natural resources of the Poudre River. What is a National Heritage Area?

Poudre Learning Center:
- Caring for Our Watersheds is an education program that engages students in preserving and improving their local watersheds through student-led solutions (Grades 9 -12). Implementation funds and cash awards are available!
- The Well Watch Program is an interdisciplinary earth's systems program providing K-12 students with a close-to-home, concrete, opportunity to investigate real science issues surrounding groundwater and surface water. This program enables students to better understand the science that guides their water management decisions.

Waste and Sustainability

Big Green at Home: explore nature activism, the distance food travels to your plate and what stewardship means.
Poudre Learning Center: Caring for Our Watersheds is an education program that engages students in preserving and improving their local watersheds through student-led solutions (Grades 9 -12). Implementation funds and cash awards are available!
Project Learning Tree’s Nature Activities for Families: Ages 3-15 activities exploring easy ways to green your home and save money.

Climate Change

Poudre Learning Center: Caring for Our Watersheds is an education program that engages students in preserving and improving their local watersheds through student-led solutions (Grades 9 -12). Implementation funds and cash awards are available!