Click here to watch a short video on Nature in the City

What is Nature in the City?

Baltimore Woods' Nature in the City program brings authentic, hands-on/minds-on natural science learning to K-6^th grade urban school children. Now in its ninth year with the Syracuse City School District, and in its pilot year with the Auburn City School District, this award winning program is better than ever. Nature in the City lessons provide relevant, meaningful and fun ways to learn science. Each participating classroom receives a series of three lessons with a common learning objective and theme. The hour-long lessons are tied to the New York State Science Standards and have been tailored to support the Elementary Science Core Curriculum. Nature in the City lessons support teachers and enhance the science being taught in the classroom.

Each year Billy B. Brennan, the Natural Science Song and Dance Man, brings the Nature in the City show to participating schools. The concert is a great way to re-enforce science topics covered throughout the year, and a fun capstone to the program.

Through walking field trips to nearby parks and green-spaces, as well as lessons in the classroom, student learning is neighborhood based. Because Baltimore Woods brings the program to the students, the carbon footprint from transportation is reduced, as well as conserving transportation costs and valuable instruction time. Most importantly, student science learning is enhanced as evidenced through standardized and outcome based student assessments.

Supported by the Syracuse City School District, Save the Rain, and local corporate sponsors; Nature in the City is a great way to kick-off a lifetime of science learning!

How does Nature in the City fit with the New York State Learning Standards?

Nature in the City lessons correlate with the Elementary Science Core Curriculum. Programs chiefly focus on and support Standard 4: The Living Environment. Baltimore Woods provides opportunities for students to have direct experiences with the living environment by bringing natural science education into the classroom.

In 2010 Baltimore Woods' education staff re-wrote the Nature in the City curriculum, making special efforts to correlate the lessons not only with the NYS Elementary Science Core Curriculum, but also with the Syracuse City School District Elementary Science Curriculum. The curriculum is continually adjusted and new lessons written as the science curriculum changes.

One example of this change appears in our Sixth Grade lessons. Responding to teacher feedback, Baltimore Woods educators wrote three new lessons focusing on earth science, addressing the rock cycle and how the landscape reveals a place's history. In 2011 a new fifth grade lesson was written to address the change in curriculum to include ecosystems. For more information on the lessons offered in each grade level, please download our Nature in the City program brochure.

Nature in the City
Background Information

City parks and green-spaces within walking distance of schools are overlooked resources containing an array of cultural, ecological, and historic assets.  They serve as a springboard to teach skills and cultivate a love of learning and sensible stewardship.

In 2002, Baltimore Woods created Nature in the City to showcase urban ecology and engage young children in learning about the culture, geography, natural resources and ecology of their neighborhoods. In October 2003, Billy B. Brennan, the Natural Science Song and Dance Man, gave the premier performances of the Nature in the City show co-created with Baltimore Woods in Syracuse.

During the summer of 2009, and again in the summer of 2010, Baltimore Woods Nature Center partnered with Say Yes to Education and ran a Nature in the City summer camp out of Roberts Elementary.  The camp was a great success, giving children the opportunity to experience nature play every day in nearby Elmwood Park. The students also learned the scientific method through a series of age appropriate scientific experiments. The highlight of the summer was a trip to visit Baltimore Woods Nature Center.  The s'mores were the best!

Awards

Nature in the City is an award winning program. Awards the program has received include:  the Environmental Quality Award, the highest recognition that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) bestows on any organization (2004); the Museums for America Award from the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (2004) ; the Women Taking the Lead to Save Our Planet Award from the Syracuse Commission for Women (2009) ; and award recognition from the Syracuse Mayor's office. Executive Director Patty Weisse received the Social Entrepreneur Award from the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University for her work with Nature in the City (2012).