More than two dozen teachers from Southwest Washington school districts attended a STEM Seminar at Vancouver Community Library on Tuesday, December 3 to learn about connections between climate change and human health. The full-day professional development opportunity was led by Washington Green Schools and facilitated by ESD 112. Teachers from all disciplines and grade levels explored research and drew connections between local climate-related phenomena and human health issues.
Teachers collaborate on creating community models
Teachers worked in groups to create community models they used throughout the day to come up with solutions for urban human health challenges. In the second half of the day, teachers ventured out into the community in groups and used air quality meters to take measurements of particulate matter in various locations surrounding the library. Following the exercise, groups were asked to identify any patterns they noticed in the data and brainstorm solutions for urban air quality issues. Teachers will use the information they learned at the STEM Seminar to plan curriculum and activities that introduce their students these very real issues facing their community and come up with their own solutions for solving climate-related problems.
