Urban Forest School Library

Bringing science to life in schools through urban forestry

Can we make studying science even more interesting?

The Next Generation Science Standards, NGSS for short, and phenomena-based learning are trying to do just that. It’s a whole new way to teach science to kids. 
The standards focus on the main ideas of science (we call them disciplinary core ideas) and how they fit together, while phenomena-based learning is all about learning about science by studying what’s happening in the world around us rather than just listening to lectures.

Urban forestry is definitely the world around us – it’s the green heart of our cities, offering us the chance to learn so much about the environment right where we live. Our urban forests are a living laboratory for scientific exploration, including studying invasive species, climate change, ecosystem services, impacts of drought, plant growth and reproduction and much more. It’s a great example of how different parts of science come together – from biology and ecology to chemistry and even engineering. With urban forestry, we see how science isn’t just about books and memorizing facts; it’s about exploring and understanding the world around us and making it better.

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ngss

Learn more about NGSS

disciplinary core idea

Learn more about DCIs.