Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge
Mountain-Prairie Region

Education

Students

Surrounded by wetlands and wildlife, the Refuge provides a natural outdoor classroom for a variety of educational opportunities. See Calendar of Events for program dates.

 

Environmental Education
Message: birds, wetlands, and related topics
Audience: K-12 students and teachers
Time of Year: throughout the school year
  • Staff provides field trips and classroom visits throughout the year. Supplies (binoculars, aquatic nets, skins, skulls, etc.) are available for field trips. S.T.O.K.E.D. (Students Teaching Other Kids Ecological Dynamics) is a unique educational program which involves high school students teaching elementary students about their natural world through field trips on the Refuge in the spring. Educator workshops are hosted annually.
  • Visiting school groups must register with the Refuge at least two-weeks in advance. School groups can schedule on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday only.
Montana Junior Duck Stamp Program (“Conservation through the Arts”)
Message: waterfowl, wetland habitat
Audience: K-12 students/teachers of public, private and home schools
Time of Year: teachers introduce the program in the fall. Artwork due mid-March. Award ceremony mid-May.
  • Teachers introduce the concepts of waterfowl habitat and wetland ecology into their teaching programs by using the Junior Duck Stamp Curriculum Guide, researching waterfowl characteristics and habitat, and encouraging students to depict a duck, goose or swan in its natural habitat for the annual Junior Duck Stamp Contest.
Kid’s Fishing Clinic
Message: fish, wetlands
Audience: ages 7-12
Time of Year: early June
  • Young anglers learn about fish biology, the ethics of fishing, and the importance of the Refuge’s role in fisheries resources. They also experience fishing first-hand on the Refuge ponds. Advanced sign-up is required.
Youth Waterfowl Clinic
Message: waterfowl hunting techniques, safety, and ethics
Audience: ages 12-16
Time of Year: mid-September
  • Young sports enthusiasts learn skills to become successful and ethical waterfowl hunters through a variety of field stations. Station topics include waterfowl identification, duck calling, decoy placement, dog retrieving, etc. Advanced sign-up is required.
Hunter Safety Education
Message: hunter safety and ethics
Audience: ages 12 and up
Time of Year: spring and fall
  • Two gun hunting and one bow hunting safety education courses are hosted by the Refuge throughout the year. These courses support the Refuge’s hunting program and are taught in cooperation with Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. Advanced sign-up is required.
Welcome Back Waterfowl Day
Message: birds, migration
Audience: all ages
Time of Year: early-April
  • Observe and learn about the migrating waterfowl on the Refuge. Refuge staff and volunteer birding experts are available on Wildfowl Lane with spotting scopes for close-up views of the waterfowl. Learn about waterfowl identification, biology, and migration.
Bitterroot Birding Festival
Message: birds, migration
Audience: all ages
Time of Year: mid-May
  • Celebrate the return of migratory birds to the Bitterroot Valley. This festival is a community event with a variety of activities for all ages, including community celebrations, special presentations, field trips, exhibits, demonstrations, and children’s activities.

Environmental education sites:
America’s National Wildlife Refuge System – Education
The Leopold Education Project
Project Wet
Project Wild
Shorebird Sister Schools Program
USGS Children's Butterfly Site
Montana Natural History Association

Last updated: August 25, 2008