Four Winds Nature Institute

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!
We currently need volunteers for the following classrooms: Trombley, Shepherd, and O’Neill. If you want to give these classrooms an opportunity to learn about nature and the environment, contact a coordinator.
 
About Four Winds
Why do leaves change color in the fall? What rock floats in water? Do all bugs fly? Children are naturally curious about the world around them. The Four Winds program helps them fuel their curiosity and answer questions about nature.
 
The Four Winds Nature Institute is a non-profit organization advancing the understanding, appreciation and protection of the environment through community-based natural science education and research. Four Winds education programs bring children and adults together to connect them to the natural world where they live, work and play.
 
Four Winds educators provide education and resources to adult volunteers in the Colchester School District. The volunteers then go into the classrooms to teach kids. We encourage the kids and volunteers to get outside and explore!
 
During the 2011-12 school year, Colchester students will be learning about Patterns of Similarities in nature.
 
Volunteering
Amaze your child with science facts--become a Four Winds volunteer!
 
All elementary schools in Colchester participate in the Four Winds program, but the program cannot be successful without the help of parents, other relatives, or family friends. To be a volunteer, you do not need a teaching degree, just a desire to help kids learn about their natural world.
 
Volunteers attend a two-hour training each month. These training sessions are held on the first Tuesday of the month from 9-11am at the Colchester Meeting House. If you cannot attend, we can send you a link to the training videos after. The school’s coordinators supply materials for the workshops. Volunteers schedule time with their classroom teacher, usually 1.5 to 2 hours, to present the workshop to the kids each month.
 
All volunteers will need to submit a background check form for the Colchester School District.
 
Funding
Fundraising is necessary to pay the yearly fees and procure materials needed for the workshops. School coordinators from the three elementary schools share the fees, but fundraisers are held at individual schools to ensure funding is available for that school and its materials.
 
Contact
If you would like to volunteer in a classroom, let your child’s teacher know. Or, contact one of the Four Winds coordinators for Porters Point School: