Participants search through a tray of forest floor

Searching for insects in the lab at Andrews Forest’s “Teachers as Researchers” Workshop. AND_LTER
Credit: Lina DiGregorio/AND LTER

LTER sites are uniquely positioned to develop and share K-12 and University classroom resources and lessons focused on long-term ecological processes and ecosystems. Lesson plans and other classroom resources such as educational videos and in-class activities are free to download from individual sites education pages and may also be found on the LTER Education Digital Library.

Teachers search for insects at the Teachers as Researchers Workshop, Andrews Forest.
Credit: Lina DiGregorio / AND LTER

Teacher lesson plans and student activities offer place-based instructional materials focused on specific ecological processes and ecosystems. Additionally LTER sites offer long term datasets that cover a wide range of natural system and human variables such as: temperature, rainfall, streamflow, vegetation growth rates, animal populations and much, much more.

K-12 teachers also have opportunities to work with research scientists through the Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program. The RET program provides a educators with professional development focused on current field and laboratory ecological research practices and procedures to help educators integrate these components into their classroom teaching. Education is crucial to the LTER mission and through these and other resources support ecological science education for students, educators and the general public.

Students examine flowering forbs.

Students examine flowering forbs.
Credit: NWT-LTER

Site NameEducation Manager
Andrews Forest LTERKari O'Connell
Arctic LTERAmanda Morrison
Baltimore Ecosystem StudyAlan Berkowitz
Beaufort Lagoon Ecosystems LTERKatie Gavenus
Bonanza Creek LTERElena Sparrow
California Current Ecosystem LTERCari Paulenich
Cedar Creek LTERKara Baldwin
Central Arizona - Phoenix LTERMonique Franco
Coweeta LTER
Florida Coastal Everglades LTERNicholas Oehm
Georgia Coastal Ecosystems LTERAustin Heil
Harvard Forest LTERKatharine Kinkle (katharinehinkle@fas.harvard.edu)
Hubbard Brook LTERAmey Bailey
Jornada Basin LTERStephanie Bestelmeyer
Kellogg Biological Station LTERElizabeth Schultheis
Konza Prairie LTERJill Haukos
LTER Network Office (UCSB)
Luquillo LTERSteven McGee
McMurdo Dry Valleys LTERAlexandra Rose
Minneapolis-St. Paul LTERHolly Menninger
Moorea Coral Reef LTERSamantha Davis
Niwot Ridge LTERAlexandra Rose
North Temperate Lakes LTERAdam Hinterthuer
Northeast U.S. Shelf LTERAnnette Brickley
Northern Gulf of Alaska LTERKatie Gavenus
Palmer Antarctica LTERJanice McDonnell
Plum Island Ecosystems LTERDavid Moon (dmoon@massaudubon.org)
Santa Barbara Coastal LTERScott Simon
Sevilleta LTERKim Eichhorst
Shortgrass Steppe LTER
Virginia Coast Reserve LTERCora Baird