TurfMutt Foundation Publishes New Science Lesson Plans With USGBC Learning Lab

The TurfMutt Foundation announces 10 new lesson plans for students in grades K-8 are now available on the TurfMutt web site and in the USGBC Learning Lab. They are designed as a fun and engaging way for students to learn valuable science lessons in their own backyard, a park or school yard.

“We’re thrilled to add to our vast library of educational materials that help teachers meet the science standards in use today, especially at USGBC’s Learning Lab, which makes them available to their network of educators nationwide,” says Kris Kiser, President & CEO of the TurfMutt Foundation, which is an official USGBC® Learning Lab Education Partner.

In the lessons plans, superhero and Foundation "spokesdog," Mulligan the TurfMutt, with her "outdoor power" pals Big Rooty, Water Warrior, the Green Ranger, and Professor Botany, battle the environmental "bad buys" including Carbon Creep, Dust Demon, Heat Freak, and Dr. Runoff.

The curriculum's hero, Mulligan, is real-life rescue dog, rescued by Kris Kiser a few years ago. "Having a dog as a spokesperson of our program makes it 'sticky' for kids. And no one loves a yard and green space more than a dog," he says. "Children may be more apt to learn valuable lessons right in their own backyard or school yard from a fun-loving, adventurer like Mulligan the TurfMutt."

TurfMutt's past education curriculum has reached more than 70 million children, educators and families since 2009.

The new lesson plans are varied by grade, including activities where students can:

• See trees "breathe" by capturing water vapor given off by trees on plastic bags, and learn how trees absorb and return water to the atmosphere.
• Practice counting and learn about their own carbon footprints at home and in school.
• Figure out how many creatures hang out in one square foot of healthy dirt outside, observing the worms and insects found.
• Calculate how much water a plant transpires.
• Go on a scavenger hunt to find the wildlife that reside around us in backyards and community parks.
• Conduct an experiment examining whether we water plants, or plants water the earth.
• Use rain gauges and an outdoor experiment to calculate water runoff and talk about ways to control it.
• Do an experiment to discover dust in an area and discuss ways to mitigate it.
• Learn how soil and trees help capture storm water, with a poster illustrating how communities with green plantings and riparian barriers does a better job of controlling runoff into waterways.

The arts are included in the lessons, as well. One of the plans provides an original drama script where students can act out parts for flowers, sun, trees, shrubs and environmental villains, such as Carbon Creep. By putting on the play as a class or for others, students can learn how green plants, trees and shrubs help our communities.

The 10 new lesson plans, synchronized with the Next Generation Science Standards used in classrooms across the country, are available for download as pdf files and are also helpful for homeschoolers. All of the lessons include suggestions for more ways to learn about the topics covered.

The TurfMutt lesson plans are free on TurfMutt.com and available via subscription from the USGBC Learning Lab. Prior TurfMutt lesson plans, created with Scholastic, Discovery Education and Weekly Reader, are also housed on the website at TurfMutt.com.