Kane said Maine is the 47th state to adopt the program, and has introduced 5,000 Maine educators to the environmental education program that is applicable to all disciplines. Workshops are scheduled year-round for school districts or for individual schools and Kane incorporates information specifically on Maine s wildlife and natural resources. The ideas and concepts are applicable worldwide, Kane said. It started in Maine with a grant from the Outdoor Heritage Conservation Lottery Ticket. Using wildlife as the hook, it helps to teach students.
Kids are pretty interested in learning about bears and whales.
Kane also runs the Wild School Sites, a program in which she works at individual schools, creating an environment where wildlife can thrive. She has worked with five schools statewide enhancing their schoolyards for wildlife, leaving each school with an outdoor classroom to study and use. I created one at the school in Monroe, Kane said. I rode my motorcycle by there recently and there were birdfeeders and benches. It had really grown.