Environmental Education

Educational Mission

North County Land Trust is committed to providing nature-based education to youth throughout our region. We strongly believe that all children should have access to natural spaces for education and enjoyment. We proudly partner with schools and youth organizations in the communities we serve to provide environmental programs that foster a connection with nature.

Past Educational Initiatives

Longsjo Middle School

Students at Longsjo Middle School learn what seeds need from their environment to grow

From 2010-2018 NCLT has provided classroom science enrichment for the students at Longsjo Middle School in Fitchburg. Our TerraCorps member serving as Youth Education and Community Engagement Coordinator continues to bring hands-on activities to students such as owl pellet dissection, seed starting, oil spill clean-up simulation, and many more. NCLT partners with outside organizations such as the Nashua River Watershed Association (NRWA) to bring additional programs to students that are applicable in their own lives. We align these activities with the state’s curriculum standards to supplement classroom learning and exhibit science concepts in the natural world. NCLT also continues to collaborate with Longsjo Middle School on their annual 5th grade field trip to Crocker Conservation Area for a day of exploration and fun. Thank you to the the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts and the Ronald Ansin Foundation for their grant support throughout the years.

Boys & Girls Club

NCLT’s Youth Education & Community Engagement Coordinator has partnered with multiple Boys & Girls Clubs in our area to bring weekly activities to their after-school program based on various natural themes. Past themes include exploring local flora and fauna, using natural products for art and survival, and examining environmental impacts. This year kids at the Boys & Girls Club used recycled paper products to create valentines that were given to members of the Fitchburg Senior center. Our coordinator also loves to bring the kids outside as much as possible and expose them to new and unique ways to connect with nature. Throughout these weekly programs, kids at the various Boys & Girls Clubs have shown a growing interest and willingness to interact with the natural world.

Hubbardston Center School

NCLT has offered an environmental education program in the spring to 3rd grade students at Hubbardston’s Center School, funded by a generous anonymous donation. Led by environmental educator, Laurie Nehring, this program emphasizes hands on, science based inquiry into the lives of owls. Approximately 50 students participate in this program each year that has been offered since 2012. Following the classroom program, Laurie will lead a public Owl Prowl to search for signs of local owls.