Pacific Southwest Region
California, Nevada and Klamath Basin

Schoolyard Habitat Program

Please download the following Fact Sheet for more information on the Schoolyard Habitat Program:

Schoolyard Habitat Fact Sheet (PDF)

The Schoolyard Habitat Program helps teachers and students create wildlife habitat at their own schools. Typical projects include: wetlands, meadows, forests and variations based on specific ecoregions. Many projects are planned through multiple phases and change over time as children from various classes build upon the existing work of past students.

We work with your school to provide:

  • technical assistance and project guidance
  • teacher training,
  • develop written materials

Benefits of a Schoolyard Habitat

Improved habitat: Schoolyard habitat projects provide habitat for local and migratory wildlife including songbirds, shorebirds, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects and more. In many cases, these habitats also provide a vegetative buffer to nearby streams, helping to reduce pollution reaching these waterways. To be ecologically sound the schoolyard habitats must be large enough in size and scope so they have a lasting impact on the local environment.

Integrated into the curriculum: Schoolyard habitats offer teaching and learning opportunities in English, science, mathematics, history, geography, social studies and art. The very process of planning, creating and using a schoolyard habitat provides children with unique hands-on experiences. A well-designed schoolyard habitat provides the opportunity for long-term data collection, which teachers attest is an important element for effective teaching.

Stewardship: Research has shown that during the formative years of life, students develop perceptions and values about their environment. If well designed and managed by students, schoolyards can provide them with a powerful example of good land stewardship. Experts have demonstrated that young children are driven to explore, discover and play while refining motor skills. A schoolyard that includes a diversity of natural areas allows students to exercise these needs while nurturing the development of a land ethic that values natural spaces.

Restoring a native habitat on a school site provides opportunities for:

Children to develop knowledge and skills as they undertake an exciting, real-life project.

Teachers to enliven teaching and learning that can weave through the curriculum from kindergarten through 12th grade and beyond.

A school to create opportunities for community involvement and diversify the schoolyard environment.

Restoring a school landscape provides the opportunity to engage students in:

  • Scientific inquiry in a meaningful context
  • Hands-on, minds-on learning
  • Real-life, important decisions building confidence and resiliency
  • Interdisciplinary learning in a broad context
  • Work among peers, classes, grades and schools.

Contact

Carolyn Kolstad
Schoolyard Habitat Program Coordinator
2800 Cottage Way Suite 2606
Sacramento, CA 95825
916-978-6158
Carolyn_kolstad@fws.gov

Please contact me for further information or see our regional office contacts for the office closest to you:

http://www.fws.gov/cno/conservation/habitat.cfm
Last updated: May 15, 2009