My City’s An Ecosystem: A Handbook for Leaders of After School Urban Ecology Programs
The out-of-school hours are an ideal time for exploration of urban ecosystems. KidsGrow, a groundbreaking environmental education after-school program created by the Parks & People Foundation, has opened the eyes of hundreds of young people in Baltimore to the richness of their local ecosystem. The Parks & People Foundation requested help from BES to enhance the urban ecology portion of the KidsGrow Program.
The development of this handbook has been a rewarding journey taken by ecology educators, ecologists, scientists, teachers and students who have developed, delivered and participated in the lessons and experiences described in these pages. It has been a fruitful collaboration between the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES) and the Parks & People Foundation.
My City’s An Ecosystem is an attempt to integrate good science, a love of nature and excellent citizenship skills in an engaging set of Modules. The Modules have been used by several KidsGrow classes at six different school sites; including elementary and middle school children. While designed for school-based sites which serve their own students, the curriculum is also suited for other types of after-school programs. Outside sites have adopted and used single modules as well.
