Build a coalition of interested people. Be sure to include school administrators, grounds-maintenance staff, parents and interested community members from the start. Involve students in as many aspects of the planning and implementation of the project as possible. Coordinate with teachers at different grade levels to divide up the curricular opportunities. Each takes root slowly, but bears rich fruits.
Students map the site to determine how best to design the restoration.
As they determine a plant list for the site, they examine plant characteristics, perform soil tests, and squeeze numbers into a realistic budget. They improve their skills in writing, art, computer technology and science as they develop signs, brochures or articles for the local paper. Inquiry-based research flourishes as students become deeply engaged in the restoration process. Opportunities for real hands-on learning involves all grades as the students celebrate the initial efforts of returning one small piece of land to its native habitat. Outreach Develop signs and brochures Write a project newsletter Produce a school project video Research Limitless opportunities for designing experiments as students make observations, ask questions, and discover results Background The Earth Partnership Program started in 1991 as an outgrowth of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum's focus on ecological restoration as a way of establishing a positive relationship between people and the land.