From the Classroom

Watershed Program Seeps into Petaluma Classrooms→

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Watershed Program Seeps into Petaluma Classrooms

Friends of the Petaluma River’s Watershed Classroom in collaboration with the City of Petaluma, is offering six scholarships to middle and high school students. The annual FOPR competition involves students creating a short, compelling, well filmed and edited public service announcement.

This year’s competition asks students to create a video illustrating what people can do to reduce microplastics in the Petaluma River. Videos can be a skit, newscast, music video, documentary style video, or even an animation. Students are encouraged to be creative.

Students in 6th through 12th grade from Petaluma and Penngrove may compete and the submission deadline is March 31st.

FOPR’s Stephanie Bastianon explained that the organization supports outdoor education that is hands-on and project-based. Their Watershed Classroom program directly supports educators with curriculum that is robust and gives students meaningful outdoor experiences. She said that it’s project-based with a defined driving question that encourages sustained inquiry by students and an opportunity to report their findings to the public.

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Christmas Bird Count

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After getting out of school, with the weather getting cold, it can be very tempting for kids to hideout inside. Of course it's lovely soaking up time together during the holiday break, but when you’re ready to get the gang back outside we’ve got a great recommendation. This year is Audubon's 120th Christmas Bird Count, with participation across the US, throughout Canada, and many other countries in the Western Hemisphere. In efforts to encourage children to get involved, Sonoma Birding created the Christmas Bird Count for Kids, which is now in it's 9th year. Community members contribute their time and keen eyes to this massive citizen science bird census. It’s a birding blitz! What is particularly special about this event is the inspiring collective effort of the volunteers. Children and parents, novice and experienced bird watchers, all come together to celebrate and record this majestic migration. 
 
This is an opportunity to introduce your children to a longstanding annual event, one that may become your family's new holiday tradition! 

Welcome Aidan Ward

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Welcome Aidan Ward

Please help us welcome a new member of the Watershed Classroom team! Aidan Ward helps lead WC orientations, assists with field trips to the David Yearsley River Heritage Center, and works with children at FOPR nature camps. Here is Aidan in his own words:

I am Aidan Ward, a native Petaluman who is excited to be joining Friends of the Petaluma River! After graduating from UC Santa Cruz in 2012 with a B.S. in Health Sciences, I have been charting a course toward outdoor education and hands-on science-based learning for children and adults of all ages. I have long studied the riparian areas of the Petaluma River watershed, and I am grateful and excited to share my knowledge and learn in the process. I look forward to nourishing a spirit of community stewardship and lifelong learning as an instructor with Watershed Classroom.

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Watershed Week: A WC Teacher Testimonial

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Watershed Week: A WC Teacher Testimonial

This past Summer I participated in the Watershed Week professional development organized and sponsored by STRAW and Friends of the Petaluma River. In past years, both groups had held separate events, but on teacher suggestion they joined forces to create one, amazing event.

I have attended PDs by both STRAW and Friends of the Petaluma River’s Watershed Classroom. Both groups put together useful and inspiring programs. The challenge for teachers is that many of us are involved with both groups, and so due to time constraints we often felt like we had to choose one or the other. Combining the workshops supports both programs really well, as both have similar goals: a deepening of community and enriching classroom experiences that inspire a love and wonder for our local environment. And because it is now a combined workshop no one is missing out on any of the good stuff.

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