Education

Module 1: Teachers attend a pre-program training session 

Join a 1-hour online training session during which Dalal Hanna will provide an overview of the program. 

Timeline: Early September 

Access content: https://youtu.be/hOehvHzeWEQ

Module 2: Join an online introductory session with your classroom

Join a 45-minute online session with your classroom, during which Dalal Hanna will share a little bit about the importance of fresh waters and your classroom's participation in this program. Students will have time to ask any questions about fresh waters that come to mind.  

Timeline: Mid-September

Access content: https://www.youtube.com/live/-mK4Nw_ORfY.

Module 3: Join an online freshwater field trip with our team  

Join a 45-minute online session with your classroom, during which scientist Dalal Hanna, map maker Ross Donihue, filmmaker Jason Jaacks, and educator Joe Grabowski will take you on a field trip to a stream where they will collect information about water quality and aquatic biodiversity. 

Timeline: Late September

Access content: Teachers whose classes are registered for the 2024-2025 iteration of this program can access the September 27, 12pm ET live session via this link: https://streamyard.com/dnk9q7fjvp. All are welcome to join the event while it’s happening live or after the fact via this link: https://youtube.com/live/XZHoguA2FX8.

Module 4: Take your first field trip

Classrooms take their first of multiple field trips to a local water body to collect information about water quality using a Water Rangers kit and upload this information to the Water Rangers data platform.  Learners also apply the MacroBlitz approach to document aquatic insect diversity using iNaturalist. These trips continue on a monthly basis throughout the year when possible.  

We recommend trying to align field trips with the monthly Water Rangers testing days.

Module 5: An Introduce to Freshwater Conservation Careers

Join a 45-minute online session with your classroom during which scientist Dalal Hanna, map maker Ross Donihue, filmmaker Jason Jaacks and educator Joe Grabowski share about how their diverse careers relate to freshwater conservation. Ask questions about what it is like to have their jobs. 

Timeline: November or early December

Access content: Teachers whose classes are registered for the 2024-2025 iteration of this program can access the November 19, 1pm ET live event via this link: https://streamyard.com/7eiz52i2jk. The event is also open to all via this link: https://www.youtube.com/live/E-V2RaeFRCQ.

Module 6: Teacher Map Maker and ESRI storymap training session

Classroom teachers attend an 1.5 hour online training session to learn how to use Map Maker and ESRI Story Maps. The session will specifically be focused on learning how to locate and visualize the watershed of the field site teachers have been visiting with their classrooms since September. Teachers can in turn train students in their classrooms to use these tools. 

Timeline: January 

Access content: A link to the January, 2025 live event (exact date TBC) and video recording will be posted here.

Module 7: Begin developing your freshwater conservation action project

Teachers introduce the idea of developing a freshwater conservation action project to their classrooms and begin to work collaboratively with students to develop a project.

Some examples of potential projects include (but are certainly not limited to!): identifying a local freshwater conservation problem and writing a letter to a local member of parliament about it; creating a map of your local watershed to share with other classes at your school using a free online resource like Map Maker and ESRI StoryMap; designing and installing a mural at your school that highlights the importance of fresh water.

These projects will be developed by each individual participating class with the option to share an overview of your classroom project with other classes through a public online project repository.  

Timeline: December - May

Module 8: Learner-led exploration of the project website 

Learners explore the entire content of Freshwater Live website and work individually or as a classroom to come up with related questions they’d like to have answered by the project team. Each participating classroom should submit three questions via the website contact form. They will receive answers within one month. 

Timeline: Anytime between February and April 

Module 9: Learn about the Legacy of Forestry on Fresh Waters project

Join a 45 minute online session with the Legacy of Forestry on Fresh Waters project lead Dr. Dalal Hanna to learn more about how timber harvesting affects fresh waters. 

Timeline: May

Access content: Participating classrooms can access the May 14, 2025, 12h30pm ET live event via this link: https://streamyard.com/f8f82bie76. The event is open to all via this link: https://www.youtube.com/live/HgK-oM47uzY.

Module 10: Freshwater conservation-action project share

Classrooms develop a creative overview of the applied freshwater conservation project they worked on and upload it to a public online project repository (more about that coming soon).

Overviews could be a drawing, written report, video or audio recording. The format is entirely up to the classroom! Permissions are required for teachers to post content that features students. 

The 10 core classrooms engaged with the 2024-2025 iteration of the program will be invited to join a private project-sharing online event held in June 2025 (exact date TBC). The link to access this password protected event will be made available here at a later date. 

Timeline: Early June 

Access content: You will eventually be able access a repository of shareable project overviews via a link posted here, but don’t expect to find anything there until June 2025 when the first iteration of this program comes to a close. 

Wrapping up 

We invite all teachers and students that engage in this program to fill out a post-program survey when they complete the program. A link to these surveys will be made available in June 2025.