Hands On Activities

Benefits of becoming part of the Bee City Canada community:

  • Fabulous inspiration for Inquiry-based and STEM learning.
  • Connecting with other Bee City Canada Schools across Canada.
  • Creating an outdoor classroom.
  • Creation of a beautiful pollinator garden.
  • Mentorship of the community about pollinators and how everyone can help them.
  • Sharing of resources, events and activities on the beecitycanada.org website.
  • Increasing the celebration potential of events and programs.
  • A stronger connection to Nature.
  • Engage the entire school with an identity.
  • Weaving the arts into the pollinator education program.

This toolkit supports practitioners who encourage children’s outdoor play. It takes a balanced approach to risk and safety. The toolkit was created it because of growing concerns that children are overprotected when playing outdoors or stopped from going outside altogether. As a result, they miss out on the joy and sense of adventure they should have from playing outside, and lose out on the long-term benefits of outdoor play.

Nature Alberta aims to be a strong voice and an active champion for the greater appreciation and conservations of Alberta's natural environment. Published four times per year, each magazine offers informative, educational, and engaging nature writing and photography that inspires readers to venture out and directly experience nature, deepens their connection with the natural world, and strengthens their commitment to protecting Alberta’s local habitats and wild places. Content can be used to guide discussions, engage students, and more. See the website to download free PDFs of current and past issues and the Nature Kids page to explore learning resources.

Take Me Outside has a directory of resources about outdoor learning, including lesson plans and kits!

See the Canadian Outdoor Learning Resource Hub for a detailed list of other organizations supporting outdoor/environmental learning.

Join the Take Me Outside for Learning Challenge each year to gain access to additional resources, presentations, and professional development opportunities. 

Keepers of the Athabasca have created ready-to-use powerpoints and resources for Junior High and High School classrooms. These powerpoints and resources have previously been offered as workshops for teachers. Keepers of the Athabasca have generously donated these materials so that teachers can utilize them in the classroom. 

Exploring the Treaties: Junior High powerpoint, Senior High powerpoint, resources page, walk of privilege exercise

"Where's my Power?" Exploring Power by Saving Energy (energy audit tools for your school & home, energy efficiency, and Indigenous perspectives): Junior, Senior, resources, Climate Connection Circle Game

Community Climate Action Answering your Questions about Solar Power (What do Traditional Knowledge Holders observe? What can we do to slow climate change? How can I get a solar installation for my school/home?):  Junior, Senior, resources, climate change fact sheet, Climate Connection Circle Game

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Senior High (only version), resources, walk of privilege exercise

Indigenous Water Governance: Junior, Senior, resources, water testing activity (see powerpoint slide "Water testing activity")

Talking Circle Guidelines for using a Talking Stick. 

See social studies curriculum links to the above lessons here. 

 

Bob is passionate about solar power, the sun, and renewable energy. He previously worked in the field of electricity and integrating renewable energy sources to increase reliability of the electric grid. Now retired, he has created a website to share his interest with the world! Bob's Solar Power Hobby Site is an excellent resource for Elementary and Junior High for learning about all things solar and renewable energy. Packed full of valuable resources, the website also includes a variety of solar cooker designs, recipes, and information about the solar panel installation process.

Discovering the Arctic Learn about arctic wildlife, challenges, people, and research.

Discovering Antarctica Learn about the oceans, atmosphere, landscape, food webs, exploration, and challenges. 

Discovering Galapagos Learn about the challenges that we face in ensuring a sustainable future for these unique islands and find out about ground-breaking conservation projects happening now.

Each website features activities, images, video clips and fact sheets.

 

Nature Alive Adventures provides customizable outdoor experiences right to your school parking lot or to an outdoor space near you. They provide instruction in outdoor skills (e.g. animal awareness and tracking, natural fiber cordage, fire lighting, shelter building, etc), quinzhee building, and more! Nature Alive Adventures also provides day and overnight trips with snowshoes and freight toboggans. They are certified instructors with Paddle Canada to provide canoe instruction, guided trips, and certification.

Their YouTube channel provides in-class resources and instruction in a variety of outdoor pursuits and topics, as well as providing Nature Minutes, short videos with follow up activities that are meant to challenge kids to get outside.

To get in touch with Nature Alive Adventures, contact Dale and Colleen Kiselyk 780-305-6921
 

The Alberta Community Bat Program provides an Alberta Bats Colouring and Activity Book for elementary grades, a documentary about Alberta bats and the challenges facing their populations, and a guide for building a bat house. You can also take part in citizen science to help researchers learn more about the species of bats in Alberta. As part of the Alberta Community Bat Program, WCS Canada is compiling one of Alberta's largest databases of bat observations. Contribute your data and help better understand the distribution, habitat use, and seasonal timing of bat activity. There is a Bats of Alberta group on iNaturalist! Download the app to add your bat sightings!

Three Nations Energy provides teacher & student guides, videos, and fact sheets about the carbon cycle, methane cycle, climate change, energy efficiency, renewable energy, hydroponics, and gardening! The student guides allow for self-directed learning and include an activity, basic facts, and follow up challenges and experiments. The teacher guides can be combined with the associated factsheets. Alberta curriculum ties are identified for all activities.

These materials are available as a Basic, Advanced or General level. The Basic level has been designed for an elementary, junior high, or adult learner with less of a science or technical background. The Advanced level has been designed for a senior high student, trades person, or an adult with a strong science or technical background. The General level is more suited to a wider audience.

Guides include how to build a solar oven and solar air heating!