Project Learning Tree

06/18/2026

Looking to enhance your teaching skills and connect your students with the natural world?

🌿 Explore a variety of PLT professional development workshops near you! Whether you’re on the West Coast, Midwest, or East Coast, we’ve got opportunities for educators of all backgrounds.

Check out upcoming workshops and start your journey toward more hands-on, nature-based learning today!

👉 https://www.plt.org/resources/plt-in-the-wild

06/16/2026

We're headed to NatStart26! 🍃✨

Join us virtually or in San Antonio next week on June 24-27, 2026, at NatStart26 with Natural Start Alliance to gain fresh ideas and practical strategies for teaching through nature. The annual Nature-Based Early Learning Conference brings together educators, researchers, advocates, and leaders who are shaping the future of nature-based education.

Project Learning Tree (PLT) and Discover the Forest are proud to co-present the online workshop, "Inspiration and Practical Ideas to Explore Nearby Nature," helping educators discover simple, engaging ways to connect children with the natural world right outside their doors.

And if you're attending the conference in person, be sure to visit the PLT booth to meet the team, connect with Melanie Portillo from Texas A&M Forest Service, and pick up a limited-edition PLT 50th Anniversary sticker!

Are you attending? Let us know in the comments below!

🌲Check out PLT's NatStart26 online workshop: https://conference.naturalstart.org/online-workshop-inspiration-and-practical-ideas-explore-nearby-nature

06/15/2026

🌻 They might be small, but their impact is HUGE! This National Pollinator Week, learn more about the ways that birds, bats, and bugs positively impact ecosystems!

Check out these fun facts plus 6 ways you can celebrate powerful pollinators.

https://www.plt.org/educator-tips/5-hands-on-ways-to-celebrate-national-pollinator-week/

06/13/2026

Happy National Get Outdoors Day!

There’s no better way to celebrate today than by heading outside to get some Vitamin D and quality nature time. With many children out of school for the summer, check out these fun family outdoor activities!

https://www.plt.org/educator-tips/activities-to-do-with-children-outdoors/

06/09/2026

Bring nature-based education to your school or district! 🌱

We’re here to support you every step of the way, from professional development training to integrating PLT’s instructional materials into your curriculum.

https://www.plt.org/schools

06/05/2026

This World Environment Day focuses on the climate crisis and sustainable, green solutions such as sustainable forest management.

In The Global Climate / El Clima Global activity from PLT’s Explore Your Environment: K-8 Activity Guide / Explora tu Ambiente: Guía de Actividades K-8, students examine trends in carbon dioxide levels over time and its impact on ecosystems. In groups, they’ll identify potential ways to reduce the effects.

Encourage your learners to get creative while they reduce their carbon footprint!

06/03/2026

Today’s students are tomorrow’s environmental leaders, urban foresters, conservation scientists, and climate innovators.

For 50 years, PLT has connected students to green career pathways, using trees and forests as windows onto the world.

🌲Explore how PLT supports educators today and prepares learners for tomorrow:

Project Learning Tree (PLT), a flagship program of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), celebrates a remarkable milestone: 50 years of award-winning environmental education that has transformed how young people understand and care for the natural world. Through hands-on activities brought to l...

05/22/2026

Biodiversity is the spice of life! Did you know that biologists estimate that Earth’s current biodiversity is somewhere between 10 million and 1 trillion different species? And they’ve only just scratched the surface, classifying only about 1.7 million species.

For International Day for Biological Diversity, check out PLT’s Biodiversity Blitz activity collection and these accompanying resources: https://www.plt.org/activity-resources/grades-3-5-activity-charting-biodiversity/

05/21/2026

05/21/2026

🌱Big ideas start in the classroom - that's why we're excited to see applications open for the 3rd Annual Green Educators Accelerator from The Educators' Lab in partnership with The Earth Foundation!

At Project Learning Tree, we know educators are powerful changemakers and programs like this help turn ideas into meaningful local action. Through microgrants, coaching, storytelling support, and a global educator community, this accelerator empowers teachers to bring environmental education and nature-based solutions to the classroom.

Past projects have explored everything from regenerative agriculture and soil health to student-led waste reduction and tree propagation initiatives, all rooted in the belief that the best way to invest in students is to invest in teachers.

Selected educators will receive a grant to launch or grow their ideas during the 2026-2027 school year.

📢Applications are open through July 10, 2026. Learn more and apply!

We’re launching an open call for educators who are ready to help students build solutions for the planet within their schools and communities. This year, the program will support up to 18 teachers worldwide. About the Green Accelerator for EducatorsEvery academic year we welcome a small cohort of ...