FWC News Release: Black bear curriculum teaches kids about wildlife, meets Florida education standards

For immediate release: August 14, 2014

Contact: Diane Hirth, 850-410-5291

Photos available on FWC’s Flickr site. Go to: https://flic.kr/s/aHsjxNr5SK

Suggested Tweet: Florida black #bears help teach the three R’s @MyFWC! https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/FLFFWCC/bulletins/c9bea2 #Florida #schools #curriculum

       

Black bear curriculum teaches kids about wildlife, meets Florida education standards

 

Giving schoolchildren a chance to learn all about Florida black bears is a great way to teach them about wildlife, while sharpening their skills in reading, math, science and problem solving.

For that reason, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has updated its Florida Black Bear Curriculum, and put it online for the first time at BlackBearInfo.com.

The revised Florida Black Bear Curriculum is free, easy for teachers to use, and meets the new Florida Standards for educational curricula.

The curriculum offers 10 lessons on topics such as “The Black Bear Necessities” and “Oh Where, Oh Where is the Florida Black Bear?” and includes hands-on activities such as mapping and role-playing. There are also videos for students to watch such as the FWC’s “Living with Florida Black Bears.”

“The Florida Black Bear Curriculum takes children’s curiosity about black bears into the classroom, where learning about black bears can improve kids’ skills in basics like reading, math, science and problem solving,” said Sarah Barrett with the FWC’s black bear management program. “Whenever FWC staff talks to kids about Florida black bears, the response is overwhelmingly positive because kids are eager to learn and ask great questions about bears.”

With more encounters today between people and bears in Florida than in the recent past, it is increasingly important for children to learn about the state’s bear population.

The Florida Black Bear Curriculum was designed for children in grades 3-8 and has been in use since 1999, when it was created as a joint project of the FWC and Defenders of Wildlife.

Florida teachers who register on the Florida Black Bear Curriculum website can gain access to additional information, particularly in regard to how the material fits the Florida Standards.

But anyone is welcome to go to BlackBearInfo.com and take advantage of the educational material there.

 

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