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Phenology touches many fields, and connects to students' existing knowledge of the natural world.

Image credit:
Brian Powell

Education Program

Why Use Phenology In Your Education Program? Observing phenology using Nature's Notebook offers place-based, hands-on learning opportunities, provides a collaborative platform for site-based educators, promotes cross-subject engagement while addressing standards of learning, and can be used to identify and answer local scientific research questions addressed by many natural resource, volunteer and gardening groups. Phenology is an excellent lens for teaching about the natural world.

Get Started!

Are you...
A local phenology leader?
Are you a scientist, educator, staff member or volunteer at a nature center, refuge, city or National Park, botanical garden, or other similar location, working with volunteers, visitors, and school groups? Take a look at the resources we have available to help you begin a long-term monitoring program. Learn more »
A classroom teacher in Grades K-4?
There are many hands-on citizen science programs available for phenology monitoring, and some are perfectly suited for K-4 audiences. Learn more »
A classroom teacher in Grades 5-8?
See the lesson plans and ideas we have available for experientially implementing Nature’s Notebook in Grades 5-8.  Learn more »
A classroom teacher in Grades 9-12?
Implementing phenology monitoring and Nature’s Notebook at the high school level allows students to engage with the content in an experiential way, provides opportunities to do community-based projects through partnerships with local organizations, understand the implications of climate change, and engage with scientists performing data analysis. Learn more »
A higher education faculty member or teacher?
Technology in education allows for collaboration in new and exciting ways, including remote data collection and analysis, collaborative webspaces and blogging. Developing a monitoring project that meets multiple course objectives will not only create a sustainable program but provide opportunities for cross-course and community collaboration. Learn more »

For more information:

Education Program Plan