Summer Climate Ed Resources and Activities
Summer is officially upon us, which brings special opportunities to water the seeds of curiosity about the natural world around us. According to a recent podcast episode with Dr. Louise Chawla, one of the most important things caregivers can do is to slow down each day, take time to notice things outside, and ask questions in wonderment–anything from pigeons, to cloud gazing or veins in a leaf will do We’ve also pulled together a few resources on the blog to inspire adventure and curiosity all summer long.
We pulled together a few resources that can keep you and your kids learning about climate justice and nature all summer long.
FFC Summer Bingo
We put together this Summer Bingo Sheet to get your kids really into getting out into nature and learning about climate this summer.
Share your completed Bingo sheets with us on Instagram tagging @familiesforclimate #ffcsummerbingo
Experiential Activities in the Pacific Northwest
Oregon has no shortage of outdoor nature adventure activities. And it’s true, there’s no education like experiential learning. Here’s a short list of some immersive activities where kids and adults alike can learn alongside each other both in and outdoors.
OMSI Exhibit Orcas: Our Shared Future running through January 28, 2024 – We can learn so much about the environmental effects on our oceans from Orcas as well as their deep cultural significance to people around the world. A bit about the exhibit from the Omis website: “Dive deep into the stories and science that surround the magnificent orca, apex predator of all oceans. Follow the currents of ecological activism, popular culture, and Indigenous beliefs to gain a new appreciation of these sophisticated animals, long feared in Western cultures as ‘Killer Whales.’”
Columbia Slough Watershed Council Events – Our friends at the Columbia Slough have some super fun events throughout the summer including a Bird and Tree Walk at the Columbia Children’s Arboretum on June 17th and Free Summer Solstice Canoe Rentals on June 21st. Get on their email list and follow them on the socials to be up on all the events of the summer.
Portland Audubon Bird Days of Summer – Birders rejoice because Portland Audubon has a full summer of FREE bird-centric events. Better yet, these events aren’t just in Portland, you can also find events on the Coast and Malheur.
Mount St. Helens Institute Family Adventure Camp, July 7-9, 2023 – We live within the shadows of a variety of volcanoes that can offer us a deep connection to the wonder and volatility of our planet. The Mount St. Helens Family Adventure Camp offers a way to dive into the most active volcano in our region through outdoor activities for you and intergenerational teams.
Portland Parks Summer Free For All — All summer long Portland Parks is featuring FREE lunch, library activities, and cultural events including concerts and movies.
Oregon State Parks — There is no better way to experience Oregon in the summer than with the state parks. Hiking, biking, camping, swimming galore, find the park nearest you for an incredible adventure.
U-Pick Farms — Farms around the state feature in-season fruits, vegetables, and even flowers that you can pick on your own. Chances are, there’s a U-Pick farm near you.
Adopt One Block – Get your kids engaged in beautifying their own neighborhood by signing up to adopt your block and commit to keeping it clean each week. AOB will send you trash pick-up supplies and instructions!
Bike Fun with Sunday Parkways and Pedalpalooza – We're so lucky to have so many opportunities to bike in community with others to show our support this important form of transportation. The two remaining Sunday Parkways events are June 25th in NE Cully and Sept 10th in Southwest Portland. And Pedalpalooza has an array of #BikeSummer events on their calendar, keep a look out for the “family-friendly” tag for the rides.
Confluence Project Field Guide to the Sandy River Bird Blind – The Confluence Project is an organization dedicated to connecting “the history, living cultures, and ecology of the Columbia River system through Indigenous voices.” One important way they do this is through immersive nature-based art installations along the river, one of which is a short drive from Portland along the Sandy River Delta (many folks bring their dogs to what they like to call Thousand Acres Park). A short hike in the park leads you to the Confluence Bird Blind, a beautiful structure along the river constructed of sustainable, durable black locust wood. “The artwork serves as a lasting reminder of the impact humans have had on the environment and a model for a new way to envision the connection between people and the natural world,” says their website. Super Nature Adventures created a kid-focused field guide that is free to download and bring with you and your kids on your next Sandy River adventure.
Online Resources
While all we want to do is get our kids outside and playing in the beautiful weather, there are just times we can’t fight the screens. So why not make screen time educational as well. Here are a few free resources for kids of all ages to learn about nature and climate justice through interactive online activities and videos.
Slough School Online – Look no further than our local Columbia Slough Watershed Council for online activities including videos, coloring pages, activities, and other educator resources to get your kid more deeply into what’s going on in their backyard. These online resources pair nicely with a quick trip out to Whitaker Ponds.
Grow Portland Online Resources – Get your little gardeners really into what’s going on in their literal backyard with the Grow Portland printable activity sheets and online videos that introduce your kids to all things pollinator.
Make Social Justice Art with Favianna Rodriguez — In April, artist Favianna Rodriguez served as the keynote speaker at the PPS Climate Summit where she talked about art and social justice. With resources and tutorials on her website, you and your kids can realize the power of art for climate justice. Share your art on social media and tag her: @favianna on Facebook, @favianna1 on Instagram, and @favianna on Twitter.
Crash Course – Crash Course offers YouTube videos about all kinds of subjects (not limited to environment and climate change). They’re fun, engaging, and educational for kids of all ages (but probably lean more toward appealing to kids in elementary school) and taught by incredibly accomplished hosts. Our climate and environment-focused faves are Climate & Energy, Botany (this is their newest series taught by Alexis Nikole Nelson who you might know as The Black Forager on social media), and Ecology.
Eyes on Earth (NASA) – For science-interested middle and high school students, this resource lets you look deeply into the Earth’s activities including monitoring vital signs (e.g., sea level rise, atmospheric CO2), trace water movement around the planet, and see where volcanic eruptions and forest fires are happening.
American Museum of Natural History – This app has it all for elementary age students including games, readings, videos, and hands-on activities to learn about climate change.
Earth Rangers – This is an action-oriented resource for kids in grades 2-8 that provides activities to inspire the world’s future conservationists.
National Geographic – Being the source for everything nature, it’s no surprise that NatGeo has an incredible collection of educational resources for kids of all ages where you can search by topic and filter for age and other types of media.
California Academy of Sciences – This resource has something for kids of every age including Science @ Home for kid 4-11, bioGraphic for middle and high school-aged kids, and apps and interactives for everyone.
Podcasts
We live in a world of endless possibilities of podcasts and what better way to keep your kid engaged without the screen than with excellent climate justice-focused podcasts. Here are a few of our favorites.
1Point5: A Kids Podcast About Climate Justice: We love that this Kids Co.-produced podcast has a direct focus on climate justice and helps enable us to have important conversations with our kids.
We the Children – Kids Talk Climate Solutions: These kid-led conversations are a perfect way to inspire your kid to talk about and get engaged with climate action.
Wow in the World episode “Operation Earth: How to Be Cool to a Planet That’s Hot”: Every kid’s favorite science podcast also has this great episode about climate change.
America’s Test Kitchen Kids’ Mystery Recipe Season Five: Every season of Mystery Recipe is a joy, but Season Five has a climate justice-passionate intern, Kyle the Butter Knife, who brings another level of climate education to the show (which continues with his regular contributions in season 6).
Flip and Mozi’s Guide to How to Be an Earthling: Your animal-loving kids will love this show where two travel podcasting aliens crash their spaceship near Earth and decide to spend their time learning about as many earthlings as they can find (those ones that are not the “two-legged screen watchers” as they call us humans).
