“The credit will help make teachers eligible for pay increases,” explained
KIDS for the BAY Education Director Sheela Shankar. “This is great because we would like to see teachers rewarded when they make the effort to include quality environmental science lessons in their curricula. We also believe the credit program will help other teachers and principals see the value of using the local environment as a highly effective learning resource.”

Twenty teachers have chosen to enroll in the credit program this school year. It provides four units of credit for teachers who enroll while KIDS for the BAY is still actively working in their classes. These teachers meet regularly with KIDS for the BAY staff and complete reports on their experiences and their students’ experiences with the Watershed and Four Rs programs.

Teachers can earn an additional four units if they enroll in the program in
the year after KIDS for the BAY has worked in their classrooms. For these
teachers, the program provides credit as they complete the work of integrating KIDS for the BAY’s Watershed and Four Rs programs into their yearlong curriculum.

“The credit program is helping me incorporate quality, hands-on learning
opportunities into my curriculum while at the same time helping me satisfy State requirements for on-going professional development,” explained Hillcrest Elementary School teacher Susan Weinberg.

Weinberg also noted that because all of the credit program’s training occurs in her own classroom and because the assignments all center on projects she is currently undertaking with her class, it is both convenient and tailored to her own classroom situation.

“KIDS for the BAY’s credit program has presented a great opportunity for me!” she exclaimed