Gorge Ecology Institute

CLASSROOM CURRICULA

The SECRETS of Our Forest Home program uses the forest ecosystem of the Pacific Northwest as the foundation for teaching basic science concepts. The SECRETS of Our Shrub-Steppe Home program focuses on the shrub-steppe ecosystem found in eastern Oregon and Washington. Students learn about the environment outside their front door while also learning science concepts that apply to any ecosystem found on earth. The SECRETS programs are ten-week ecology curricula that includes eight classroom lessons, a Family Night, and day-long field trip. The curriculum teaches science concepts prescribed by Oregon and Washington academic standards, using the forest or shrub-steppe ecosystems to illustrate these concepts.

Weekly lessons are outlined by the SECRETS acronym:

Graphic- What SECRET stands for.

Teams of four SECRETS instructors, comprised of Institute staff, AmeriCorps members, and community volunteers, lead the lessons. This ensures a small student to teacher ratio for hands-on learning that engages all students. We know of no other environmental education program that offers such extensive support to classroom teachers in the Columbia River Gorge, and we feel this level of support is essential in order for students' grasp of ecology to become deep, durable, and applicable in their lives.

Nancy Ihde, a fifth-grade teacher at May Street Elementary in Hood River, Oregon said this about the program: "SECRETS helps me as a teacher. When students are excited about science, it carries over to their time with just me and other areas of the curriculum."

School Participants~
SECRETS of Our Forest Home

Cascade Locks Elementary, Cascade Locks, OR
Carson Elementary, Carson, WA
May Street Elementary, Hood River, OR
Mid-Valley Elementary, Odell, OR
Mill-A School, Mill-A/Willard/Underwood, WA
Pine Grove Elementary, Hood River, OR
Parkdale Elementary, Hood River, OR
Stevenson Elementary, Stevenson, WA
Trout Lake School, Trout Lake, WA
Westside Elementary, Hood River, OR
Whitson Elementary, White Salmon, WA

Color Image- Student using microscope in the classroom.

School Participants~
SECRETS of Our Shrub-Steppe Home

Chenowith Elementary, The Dalles, OR
Colonel Wright Elementary, The Dalles, OR
Dallesport Elementary, Dallesport, WA
Dry Hollow Elementary, The Dalles, OR
North Sherman Elementary, Dufur, OR
Mosier Elementary, Mosier, OR
Wishram School, Wishram, WA

Color Image- Student studying a creek in the field.