Presentations about Oregon’s wildlife and ecology are available to local teachers through the Youth Environmental Education Program (YEEP). We offer a variety of program options that can help your class meet Next Generation Science Standards and get them excited about nature! Complement your classroom lessons and supplement your science curriculum by requesting a presentation or Discovery Hike field trip with City educational outreach staff.

Presentations

YEEP classroom presentations highlight local plants and animals to spark curiosity and build connections between students and the natural world. Presentations include a science talk, hands-on activities, and exploration of what it means to be an environmental steward. Presentations are one hour in length and given to one classroom at a time. Teachers may register for up to two classroom presentations per school year.

2024-2025 Presentation Themes:

• Bats
• Beavers
• Seed Sleuths
• Monarch Butterflies
• Owls
• Turtles
• Urban Wildlife

You can also request a presentation about water.

Discovery Hikes

Take your classroom outside and turn the outdoors into a learning lab! Observe animals in their natural habitats and look for clues left by wildlife. Get to know a local park through the eyes of an ecologist and explore the ways people take care of parks and the animals that live in them. Field trips are approximately an hour and a half.

Discovery Hike Locations:

• Minto-Brown Island Park
• Willamette Mission State Park
• A neighborhood park near you!

Registration

Registration for the 2024-25 school year opens on Tuesday, September 3rd.

The Youth Environmental Education Program is funded in part by a grant from the Salem Foundation Donna E. Aldrich Trust. This funding helps keep the cost of YEEP programs low.

• Presentations: $25 per class
• Field trips: $4 per student for Title 1 schools, and $6 per student for all other schools

Stay Informed

Email the Youth Environmental Education Program Instructor to sign up for programs and learn more about opportunities to get involved with YEEP.

Download Youth Environmental Education Program Brochures

2024-2025 Youth Environmental Education Program Tri-Fold Brochure

2024-2025 Youth Environmental Education Program Flyer