Urban Parks

Sustainability Education Resources

Curriculum for Excellence through Outdoor Learning (Learning and Teaching Scotland)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Curriculum

Topics Covered: Learning and Teaching Scotland produced this curriculum to encourage students to engage with the outdoors, whether they are within school grounds, in urban green spaces, or in other places. The curriculum aims to encourage children to develop as responsible, healthy, confident, and enterprising adults.

Target Audience: Grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12

Easy Outdoor Science Activities for Kids (The Learning Channel)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Curriculum

Topics Covered: The Learning Channel designed ten outdoor science experiments to encourage students to explore the natural environment. For example, experiments require students to investigate soils, water, wind, insects, and others. 

Target Audience: Grades K-5

Parks with Curriculum-based Education Programs (National Park Service)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Curriculum

Topics Covered:The National Parks Service Web site has provided a list of parks across that nation with curriculum based education programs. This resource can serve as an excellent field trip planning guide for teachers looking to create outdoor learning opportunities for their students. 

Target Audience: Grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12

Recycle Roundup (National Geographic)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Game

Topics Covered: In this game, you help clean up the park by sorting all the trash into three bins: recycle, compost, or trash. 

Target Audience: Grades K-5, 6-8

Web Rangers (National Park Service)

Topic/Subtopic:Urban Parks

Content Type: Games

Topics Covered: The Web Rangers program at the National Park Service includes numerous activities and games that encourage students to learn about the environment and visit local parks. This Web site requires login, but it is easy and simple to sign up.

Target Audience: Grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12

NRPA Parks Build Community: Marvin Gaye Park (National Recreation and Park Association)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Video

Topics Covered: The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) is pursuing an initiative called Parks Build Community, which aims to use urban parks as a core component in the revitalization of low income urban communities across the country. This video examines its first project in Washington, DC’s Marvin Gaye Park.

Target Audience: Grades 6-8, 9-12

Plan It Green (National Geographic)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks / Sustainable Urban Design

Content Type: Game

Topics Covered: In this urban planning game, students attempt to turn Greenville into an eco-friendly town. The activity teaches students the fundamentals of sustainable urban planning and the value of green space.  

Target Audience: Grades 6-8, 9-12

The National Parks: City Kids in National Parks (PBS)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Video

Topics Covered: This 13-minute documentary film highlights several field trips that urban schools have taken to National Parks throughout the United States. Parks offer unique opportunities for urban children to engage in hands-on learning activities focused on the environment.

Target Audience: Grades 6-8

Good for the City and the Environment (Nicolas School for the Environment: Duke University)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Video

Topics Covered: This video discusses how urban parks help make cities more sustainable. By examining New York’s Central Park, the film shows how urban parks supply communities with numerous benefits, including carbon sequestration, reduced urban temperatures, wildlife habitat, and social space.

Target Audience: Grades 6-8, 9-12

Tree Diversity Activity (The National Arbor Day Foundation)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Activity Workbook

Topics Covered: The National Arbor Day Foundation created this activity booklet to provide students with an opportunity to design a community forest landscape plan and discover the importance of tree diversity.

Target Audience: Grades 9-12

What Tree is That? (The National Arbor Day Foundation)

Topic/Subtopic: Urban Parks

Content Type: Game

Topics Covered: You can identify most trees by studying their leaves, seeds, and fruit. This interactive game helps students learn the common names of trees by engaging in a step-by-step approach to evaluate tree characteristics.

Target Audience: Grades 9-12