WHALES (Watershed Heroes Program)

We have increased instruction in arts, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics that connect nature experiences or environmental stewardship by providing opportunities for our students to apply what they are learning in the classroom to the outside world. By allowing our students to study their surrounding environment through outdoor labs and exploration, students are able to make connections that then lead them to the notion that their actions directly impact their environment and that they have the power to protect it and create the society that they can be proud of.

To achieve this, our staff visited students at the beginning of the school year to introduce ourselves and the program and to give them an overview of their experience to look forward to. We also introduced them to their watershed, explaining the natural history, current issues, and what we can do to help remediate those issues. We followed with an in-class water quality lab where we taught students different methods of assessing the health of their watershed, water chemistry being one of them. We brought in actual water samples from their watershed so that they could get a snapshot of its current health. We then took students into the field so they could apply those same concepts outside of the classroom.

Through these activities, our program also utilizes a curriculum that is aligned to the content standards for California public schools adopted by the State Board of Education, including, but not limited to, the Next Generation Science standards or the California History-Social Science Standards. All of our activities are related back to learning objectives, as this is what facilitates the strong partnership between our organization and participating schools. Additionally, students are introduced to career pathways, offered internship opportunities, invited to participate in future service-learning activities, and encouraged to become engaged community members through civic engagement, particularly in addressing environmental injustices.

Coastkeeper has achieved learning opportunities 1, 3, and 4. Opportunity 1 has been integrated into all of the field trips participating students engage in. E.g. we emphasize personal individual connections between the students and these spaces by providing free time during each of our trips. Opportunity 3 has been integrated into our in-class introductory lesson on watersheds, water resources, urban runoff, and water systems. We utilized NGS standards when creating the presentation. The additional opportunities are met through various activities students participate in during field trips to natural areas throughout Orange County including, but not limited to, discussing environmental justice topics (in class and in the field), talking about minimizing packaging waste (individual and corporate responsibilities), coordinating strategies for continued participation in conservation efforts (accessible resources), and assessing the impact of the program on participants (pre-/post-tests).

Throughout the course of program activities, Coastkeeper has strengthened partnerships with organizations and agencies, including Naturalist For You, Pacific Marine Mammal Center, Back Bay Science Center, Bolsa Chica Conservancy, Orange County Environmental Justice, and CA State Parks staff at Huntington and Bolsa Chica State Beaches.

The long-standing relationships allowed for seamless coordination of program activities and strengthened the breadth of which we could teach the students. These partnerships also increase our program capacity.

Each organization provides support for the other while ensuring that the programs we implement keep the perspectives of the unique communities we serve at the forefront. Some key lessons we've learned from the first year of our grant were the need for additional resources for our participants prior to some of the Natural Area Trips, the importance of initiating scheduling with Natural Area sites as early as possible, and the need for our organization to provide more pathways for our students to continue to stay involved or revisit the areas we have introduced them to. While we prepare students at the beginning of the school year for all trips via an introductory lesson, as well as an additional in-class lab where students get acquainted with water testing equipment while in the classroom before they use them in the field, we noticed that our visit to the upper watershed for our river hike also requires additional preparation to ensure our students are comfortable. We will be preparing a video to show students what to expect and a flyer with suggested attire. Despite students getting their shoes, socks, and pants wet, they enjoyed the hike and will likely enjoy it even more with proper gear.

OC Coastkeeper did not develop any new partnerships between December 2, 2023 and November 30th, 2024. Existing partnerships for this grant program include California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bolsa Chica Conservancy, Naturalist For You. Through these partnerships, we're able to offer students a larger diversity of subject matters as well as the ability to visit certain restricted places they'd otherwise not have the opportunity to see. Our trips to the Back Bay Science Center, where many students have their first experience on a boat, to Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, where students learn about Bolsa Chica's history and ecology from knowledgeable docents, and to Silverado Creek, where students are transported from their busy lives in urban areas to a peaceful creek in the Santa Ana Mountains, would not be possible without our incredible partners. We successfully maintain strong relationships with our partners and plan on continuing these for the foreseeable future.

As stated above, we have learned the importance of fostering mutually beneficial partnerships, communicating early and often with partners and participants, as well as increasing resources for pre and post-program activities to facilitate lasting, meaningful experiences and pathways for our participants to continue their involvement.

One thing we've learned is students benefit from designated free time in the natural areas. When this time is provided to them, they're able to foster personal connections to these natural spaces as individuals/with their peers and friends. When students develop these connections to their environment and create lasting memories, they're more motivated to want to protect these spaces. We've begun prioritizing scheduling this designated time into each of our trips.