As this historic drought continues, it’s easy to see how dependent we are on water. Allowing students at a young age to explore the water in their communities creates a better understanding of how to preserve and protect this resource while gaining valuable science skills.
That’s why in 2003, we partnered with San Diego Unified School District, and the City of San Diego’s Think Blue Outreach program to create Project SWELL (Stewardship: Water Education for Lifelong Leadership). In Project SWELL, the impacts of humans on water are explored through a well-balanced, comprehensive, and hands-on water quality and pollution prevention course of study. Project SWELL helps teachers empower students to understand and improve the condition of San Diego waterways.
Project SWELL is a state standards-based science curriculum that teaches children about the importance of the region’s waterways by providing teachers with training about the scientific content, information on how to conduct scientific investigations and in-class support including materials, in class teacher trainings and lesson plans.
Through this partnership, San Diego Coastkeeper has created a hands-on program that offers training for teachers, makes it easy to engage students and meets new standards. Each Project SWELL unit of study (grades K, 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6) consists of 5 or 6 age appropriate, standards-based lessons that build student understanding of San Diego’s aquatic environments and emphasize the actions that students can take to improve them.
SDUSD K-6 teachers are you looking for an environmental education curriculum that helps your students realize the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards? Our lessons can help your students develop critical thinking, find solutions to real-life problems using science, practice reading informational text, writing, and increase their science literacy.
And here’s what we offer for teachers:
Classroom visits free of cost. Students will do hands-on experiments, models and/or find solutions to real-life problems using science. Teachers if you want a SWELL expert to present in your staff meeting or classroom contact us today! Reservations for class visits must be submitted 2 weeks before your anticipated class visit.
SWELL Science Kits are offered through the district’s Instructional Media Center upon teacher request and include materials for 36 K-2 and 4-6 grade lessons.
Professional Development is offer twice a year for K-2nd and 4th-6th grade SDUSD teachers. Teachers receive 1.5 hrs. of professional development, SWELL kit, and time compensation. Please visit www.projectswell.org for more details and to download curriculum.
Contact us at (619) 758-7743 x125 or email [email protected]. To learn more about Project SWELL visit the Project SWELL website.
