- The LEAFlet will be taking a short summer break, so there will not be a regular newsletter next month (July), but we will plan to see you again in August with updates on what to expect for the coming school year.
- LEAF Kits will not be available for check-out or return from June 28-July 5, so put in your request early and reserve your favorite kit.
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LEAF School Forest Awards 2023 Recipients | |
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Becky Panzer, kindergarten teacher at Waupun School of Agriculture and Environmental Studies (SAGES), has been instrumental in building a robust school forest program for K-6 students there.
“[Becky] has built strong relationships and allies for our school forest, and these amazing volunteers work in collaboration with Mrs. Panzer to make the forest a safe and inviting place for our students to learn," said SAGES Principal Megan Hanni. "She is a trailblazer when it comes to the forest, and to her, no project is too big-because as she says, 'Little Kids Can Do Big Things!'. "
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Jeff McKean (left), a SAGES 6th-grade teacher, nominated Becky (right) for the award. | |
The team is working to encourage classes of students from other Waupun schools to visit the Dearholdt Learning Center, Waupun’s school forest located on the shores of Fox Lake. | |
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Matthew Tiller has taught environmental science at Verona High School for 29 years. In that time, he has been instrumental in registering two school forests for the Verona School District, including Stewart’s Woods School Forest on the new high school campus.
“Mr. Tiller created a vision and design for a new 50+ acre natural area located adjacent to our new high school campus that would become Stewart’s Woods School Forest (2017-2020)," said nominator and fellow science teacher Hope Mikkelson.
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Matthew Tiller (left) receives his award from Steve Schmidt (right), LEAF Outreach Specialist. | |
"Perhaps most importantly, Mr. Tiller’s contributions have helped to foster a deeper appreciation for the environment among our students and community members. By providing opportunities to explore and connect with the natural world, he has helped to create a generation of environmentally conscious citizens who are better equipped to tackle the challenges of the future. “ | |
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Robert “Bob” Carlson is a former Clayton School District Agriculture instructor. He has worked with students at area school forests for 72 years, and he is still actively involved helping students.
Bob has always ensured students have access to land where they can continue their outdoor education. That land was sometimes the Turtle Lake school forest. Other times he has welcomed them onto his land for a variety of activities and most recently, he has donated a tract of 15 acres to the Village of Clayton as a multi-purpose environmental education space. The land is being registered as a Wisconsin School Forest called Carlson Park.
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LEAF's Steve Schmidt presented the award to Bob (center) in the Clayton Gym in front of all middle and high school students, various administrators, staff, and community members.
Current Clayton Ag Educator, David Dittbrenner (right) nominated Bob.
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Rylee Wanek, FFA member and senior at Riverdale High School, is the first student to receive the school forest award since Class ACT Charter School students in 2016.
Rylee was nominated by agricultural educator and FFA advisor, Kally Koch. Kally created the position of school forest manager, for which Rylee was hired.
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Rylee Wanek (left) receives his award from LEAF's Steve Schmidt. | |
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Koch shared that in the two years he has held the position, Rylee contributed greatly to accessibility of the forest as he helped plan and develop trails, created and implemented signs and names of trails, and created maps available to the public. Rylee also provided guided tractor ride tours to elementary 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders yearly.
As a junior he single-handedly organized the school farm/ forest tree planting day. This included many calls to industry professionals as well as communicating with equipment owners, school officials and coordinating seed pick up.
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Forestry and Energy for the Elementary Classroom | |
Join LEAF to explore our newly revised 4th Grade Forestry Lesson Guide that more accurately represents the full history of the forests in our state.
Date: Monday, August 5
Time: 9:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Location: Stevens Point, WI
Fee: $40, ($20 discount available through July 21)
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4th Grade Guide Kit Update | LEAF's 4th Grade Lesson Guide Kit has been updated. The kit contains supplemental lesson materials, fiction and non-fiction books focused on Wisconsin forests and Wisconsin First Nations, and diameter tapes for students to use when exploring the forest. | |
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The above training and kit update were made possible with funding from the
WI SFI Implementation Committee.
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LEAF On-Demand, Online Offerings
Project Learning Tree On-Demand, Online Offerings
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Visit Burlington School Forest with LEAF | |
Natural Resource Foundation (NRF) members are invited to join Steve Schmidt and Gretchen Marshall from LEAF Saturday, October 5th, for a field trip to the 160-acre Burlington School Forest. This school forest is located on the county line between Racine and Kenosha counties.
Lead by Burlington School Forest educator Trent Tonn, participants will hike 3-4 miles of trails to visit a small prairie, pine plantation, and a stand of older oak and hickory hardwoods.
Participants will also learn about the nearly-100 year history of Wisconsin's School Forest Program and its importance to conservation.
This field trip is part of 275 field trips the NRF is offering this year exploring Wisconsin lands.
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Scottish Researcher visits Wisconsin School Forests | |
Last, but definitely not least, we have been sharing a Smokey Bear fact in our newsletter each month this year as a lead up to Smokey's 80th Birthday on August 9th, 2024. Since our August LEAFlet won't be released until after this momentous date, we want to reshare this collection with you now. | |
Have questions or need additional resources? Contact us at leaf@uwsp.edu. We are here to support educators and students with forestry opportunities. | | | | |
