The consultancy:

Oxbow Farm & Conservation Center is seeking an independent consultant to work with the Oxbow Education team to design, develop, and pretest new environmental education programs for early learners as part of an EPA-funded project. The Partnering for the Future Project involves a partnership between Oxbow and Frank Wagner Elementary School to deliver EE programs to its kindergartner students. Over the course of their academic year, students will have multiple exposures to EE programming at Oxbow farm, in the classroom, and in school gardens that will be designed and installed with Oxbow’s technical assistance. The EE curriculum consultant will assist Oxbow to develop and strengthen EE “lesson plans”** for early learners in these different contexts; ensure linkages between lessons delivered at different times in the academic year and at different delivery sites; and ensure that Oxbow’s EE programming supports Next Generation Science Standards learning goals while reflecting the principles of outdoor EE.
** By “lesson plans” we refer to curricula specifying learning objectives, suggested activities, teaching aides, and steps for linking lessons.
 

About Oxbow:

Oxbow inspires people to eat healthy, sustainably grown food and to steward our natural resources for future generations. Situated on 230 acres in Western Washington’s Snoqualmie Valley, we operate a 30-acre diversified farm and a native plant nursery, support agriculture and conservation research, and provide farm-based environmental education to children ages pre-K-12th grade. Our environmental education branch, “OxEd,” connects children to nature through year-round programs delivered on the farm and in the classroom, the lunchroom, and school gardens. A one-acre Kids’ Farm, Living Playground and nature trails provide an ideal outdoor classroom for children to touch, taste, smell, hear, and see the natural world and to learn how people and the environment can thrive together.

SCOPE OF WORK:

The consultant will work with OxEd staff to:

Develop seasonally-based EE lesson plans for delivery on the farm, in the classroom, and at school greenspaces, including:

• Determine seasonally-based monthly EE themes
• Identify existing curricula and materials, at Oxbow and elsewhere, that can be adopted or adapted for the project
• Develop, as needed, new lesson plans for the project
• Pretest lesson plans
• Orient and train Frank Wagner teachers, OxEd farmer educators, and volunteer-naturalists in the use of these lesson plans
• Participate in the development and pretesting of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) tools

Create linkages across the different EE delivery contexts (on farm, in class, and at school greenspaces), including:

• Develop a user-friendly linkages tool, e.g., a well-crafted matrix to identify linkage opportunities and gaps
• Prioritize themes, topics, and lesson plans for explicit linkages
• Develop teaching aids for mutually reinforcing programming, e.g., activities asking students to recall a prior EE exposure or to prepare for an upcoming exposure
• Incorporate Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) in EE programming, including:
• Review NGSS standards to identify those most suitable for incorporation in our EE lesson plans
• Prioritize and map select NGSS standards to appropriate EE lesson plans
• Develop or modify programming materials to align with NGSS standards selected for incorporation

A detailed work plan and timeline will be developed and agreed upon at the start of the consultancy.

QUALIFICATIONS:

The consultant will have professional-level environmental education curriculum development experience. S/he will be knowledgeable of Next Generation Science Standards and have experience in developing and delivering EE programs that conform to these standards (for students pre- K through 5th grade). Experience in outdoor and early learner education is a must. Class-based education experience and familiarity with local farming practices, health and nutrition, and Spanish language skills are not required but are a plus. The consultant must be effective at working independently and as part of a team.
A Master’s degree in environmental education or a related field is preferred, but all candidates with appropriate environmental education experience will be considered for the position.