By WKTV Staff
joanne@wktv.org
The Lower Grand River Organization of Watersheds (LGROW) has unveiled plans to produce free educational videos through the end of the traditional school year (June 5), and share those videos with the public on social media. The organization has already produced 20 videos, all of which are now are available for viewing on its Facebook page and YouTube channel.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the learning landscape for Michigan teachers, parents and students”, said Wendy Ogilvie, Director of Environmental Programs at Grand Valley Metropolitan Council. “We have always provided hands-on environmental programs for students at our partner schools. With caregivers taking on new responsibilities for their children’s education, we decided to share elements of our traditional hands-on programs in a format that provides educational support to caregivers at home as well as our partner teachers.”
The LGROW staff began producing and posting the videos on May 18. Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday, LGROW hosts a Facebook Live session at 1:00 pm. The content is recorded and then shared on LGROW’s Facebook page. The videos focus on inspiring children and families to get outdoors and enjoy the watershed. They include demonstrations of science experiments and place-based activities, read-aloud story times with water-related books, and nature-themed craft tutorials.
“We’re extremely proud of the work the Environmental Programs team does every day, but their innovative approach during the COVID-19 pandemic is especially impressive,” said John Weiss, Executive Director of the Grand Valley Metropolitan Council. These videos clearly show how committed the staff is to sharing information about water quality and our environment.”
The archived videos can be accessed via the LGROW YouTube channel or clicking here. Upcoming topics are May 20 Soak up the stormwater experiment; May 22 craft activity A-Maze-ing Water; May 25 story “Beyond the Pond” by Joseph Kuefler; May 27 demonstration Who polluted the Grand River?; May 29 craft project Aquatic Plant Art; June 1 story on clean air action; June 3 a demonstration clean air action; and June 5 a craft project on clean air action.
