LTER Educator Resources

Searching for insects in the lab at Andrews Forest’s “Teachers as Researchers” Workshop. AND_LTER
Credit: Lina DiGregorio/AND LTER

LTER sites are uniquely positioned to develop and share K-12 and University classroom resources and lessons focused on long-term ecological processes and ecosystems. Lesson plans and other classroom resources such as educational videos and in-class activities are free to download from individual sites education pages and may also be found on the LTER Education Digital Library.

Teachers search for insects at the Teachers as Researchers Workshop, Andrews Forest.
Credit: Lina DiGregorio / AND LTER

Teacher lesson plans and student activities offer place-based instructional materials focused on specific ecological processes and ecosystems. Additionally LTER sites offer long term datasets that cover a wide range of natural system and human variables such as: temperature, rainfall, streamflow, vegetation growth rates, animal populations and much, much more.

K-12 teachers also have opportunities to work with research scientists through the Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program. The RET program provides a educators with professional development focused on current field and laboratory ecological research practices and procedures to help educators integrate these components into their classroom teaching. Education is crucial to the LTER mission and through these and other resources support ecological science education for students, educators and the general public.

Students examine flowering forbs.
Credit: NWT-LTER