• Seeking solutions to global warming which poses a major threat to the nation’s wildlife
• Protecting and restoring wildlife habitat, especially habitats that provide a home for threatened and endangered species
• Connecting children to nature for a nation of happier, healthier kids. These connections in early life will teach children to appreciate and respect the natural world so they can be good conservation stewards in the future.

More than 5,000 schools and other educational settings in all 50 states have been certified by NWF since 1997 when the program began and serve close to 300,000 students per year. These educational gardens and outdoor classrooms are created by student/teacher/parent volunteer teams and enhance student motivation for learning along with promoting student achievement in all subject areas. They enable a multi-disciplinary approach to learning giving students the opportunity to learn nearly any subject while gaining an appreciation and understanding of the natural world.

Research shows that Schoolyard Habitats have multiple benefits.

• Improve classroom behavior
• Help students to learn across disciplines and make them better real-world problem solvers
• Improve classroom performance in math, science, reading and social studies
• Increase scores on statewide standardized tests in basic skills, reading, science and math
• Helps educators to meet the needs of students with different learning styles or who have difficulty in a classroom setting
• Provides a range of realistic problems to address that engage students in hand-on-opportunities to apply and reinforce concepts taught in the classroom
• Foster a caring attitude about all living things making students better stewards of the earth

Learn more about NWF’s Schoolyard Habitat certification program at www.nwf.org/schoolyard.

Lessons and Activities
Brought to you with permission by the National Wildlife Federation

• Habitat for Sale (K-2, 3-8)
• What’s your Habitat? (K-4, 5-8)
• Habitat Web (K-6)
• Tree Detective (3-6)
• Woodland Chase (3-6)
• Habitat Hunt (3-6)
• Sensory Discovery Walk (K-6)
• Water Water Everywhere (3-8)
• Wind Power (3-4, 5-8)
• Who Can Live Here? (9-12)