K-12 Outreach Activities
Environmental Health Science Education for Rural Youth
In 2005, CEHS was awarded an NIH Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) from the National Center for Research Resources at the NIH to support a 5-year K-12 environmental health science program. Environmental health is being used as an integrative context for science learning, with a focus on water and air quality issues in the rural West. Special effort is being made to incorporate Native American perspectives and to develop educational materials and lesson plans that are cross-curricular in scope (math, science, language arts, health enhancement).
* Click here for abstract
* Click here for a flyer
* Take a look at NCRR's SEPA program
Partnership Newsletters
Collaborating Organizations & Institutions
Salish-Kootenai College
Watershed Education Network
Montana Natural History Center
Resources for Teachers
Click here for lesson plans, activity sheets, resources, and useful links for educators.
Air Toxics Under the Big Sky
A high school-based air quality monitoring program is one of the key subprojects comprising the CEHS science education grant. Big Sky High School chemistry teacher Dave Jones began piloting a new air toxics training program during the 2003-4 school year using one of his advanced chemistry students, Isaac Schmidt, shown here working with Tony Ward of the UM Center for Environmental Health Sciences. With assistance from Ward and another UM scientist, Earle Adams in the Chemistry Department, Jones submitted a grant application to the Toyota Tapestry Foundation resulting in the award of a $10,000 grant to support an innovative science education partnership between Big Sky High School and UM.
Using technology available at UM’s environmental chemistry lab facilities, Big Sky chemistry students will investigate levels of air toxics present in both indoor and outdoor environments and their potential relationship with respiratory problems such as asthma.
With subsequent funding from the Toshiba America Foundation, the UM-Big Sky science team is expanding upon the success of the air toxics project by establishing a collaborative network for long-term environmental health science education involving The University of Montana, tribal colleges, and several other high schools in western Montana.
* 2006 Silver Foundation Internship
* Several high school students received acclaim for their air quality research at the 47th annual Montana State Science Fair.
* SENCER Summer Institute 2005
* The SENCER Big Sky Model
Writing About Science
As part of her senior project at Hellgate High School, Mariah Smith wanted to hone her investigative writing skills by focusing on a locally relevant environmental health topic. She began to explore the question of how the occurrence of wildfires can impact the public’s health and wellbeing. An often-overlooked consequence is that household pets can also suffer from respiratory effects during these episodes, displaying symptoms that their owners may not recognize.
By delving into scientific research literature and through interviews with veterinarians and CEHS mentors, Mariah discovered that cats seem especially vulnerable to poor air quality and can develop asthma much the same as humans.
As a final step in her senior project, Mariah is pursuing the publication of her article about the potential role of companion animals as sentinels in environmental health.
Educational Trunks for Grade Schools
The new “Healthy Communities, Healthy Kids” trunks, designed for grades 3-5, present information about air pollution in western Montana valleys. The lesson plans are consistent with state curriculum standards as well as those of the Missoula County Public Schools.
The unit includes a lesson on local sources of air pollution, a dry ice demonstration/activity that shows how mountain valleys trap pollution, an acid rain activity where students test rainwater for pH, a demonstration on climate change, activities on the health effects of breathing too much air pollution, a skit and a binder full of ideas on how to encourage more students to walk and bike to school and other places. Each trunk contains materials required to teach the lessons.
Designed by certified teacher Peggy Schmidt, CEHS Education Coordinator, the trunks are now being piloted in local classrooms. Additional funding was provided by the Air Quality Division of the Missoula City-County Health Department.
The trunk is available free of charge to MCPS teachers through the District Library by calling 728-2400 x1077.
For more information about these and other outreach activities, please contact Diana Vanek, CEHS Outreach Coordinator, at (406)243-4030 or at diana.vanek@umontana.edu.