We partner with teachers to connect classroom learning to real-world environmental examples in students’ own communities. We offer water-themed day-long programs at King County’s Brightwater Wastewater Treatment Plant in Woodinville and at their South Treatment Plant in Renton.
Our Schoolyard Programs offer science and engineering lessons in schoolyards throughout King and Snohomish Counties, and field studies of neighborhood creeks, streams, and stormwater infrastructure in Seattle.
Our programs connect school science curriculum to watersheds and other built and natural systems in or near the communities where students live. They have been designed in partnership with local school districts to support Next Generation Science Standards and specific science units.
Our School Day Programs:
We strive to make sure all students are valued, respected, and included in our programs. Based on our experience as well as on research in the field, we know that incorporating both student experiences and locally-based topics increases student engagement and learning.
To help us meet the needs of all students, we aim to respond to the different issues, interests, and concerns that come up during a program, including by:
Learn more about our approach to culturally responsive teaching here.
The health and safety of you and your students, as well as our educators, is of our utmost priority. Our educators are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and will follow any additional safety protocols specific to your school or classroom.
King County has partnered with Islandwood to bring our four-hour programs to the Brightwater Education Center in Woodinville. Our goal is to bring classroom learning to life, engaging students in experiential and project-based fieldwork that appeals to diverse learning styles. Programs are provided at no cost to schools and free transportation is available for those with 35% or greater FRL.
We ask all schools to provide their own transportation to and from our programs. However, we have limited funding to provide free transportation through King County’s Wheels to Water Program. Wheels to Water can provide buses or reimburse your school for costs to provide your own bus. To qualify, your school must be at a minimum 35% free and reduced lunch rate as per OSPI.
Freshwater Ecosystems Field Study for 3rd–5th Grades
In this field program, students investigate the role of freshwater ecosystems in their communities. They develop an understanding of who and what lives in and around our ponds, how people use, impact, and change them, and how the ponds help us manage stormwater. This program incorporates Next Generation Science Standards.*
As part of their day, students will use science practices to:
As a result of the program, students will be able to:
Humans and the Water Cycle Program for 5th–6th Grades
What happens when we “borrow” water from the water cycle? What happens to this borrowed water after we use it in our homes, schools and businesses? In this program, students will learn how the choices they make on a daily basis impact the water cycle. Students experience the wastewater treatment plant firsthand and see how engineers have designed a system to clean our water and protect human and environmental health. This program is designed for classes that are studying human impacts on the water cycle, wastewater, water use and urban infrastructure. This program involves a tour of the Treatment Plant and is only for students aged 9 and up. Hard hats and vests will be provided for students. Closed-toe shoes are required for this program.
As part of their day, students will:
As a result of the program, students will be able to:
Stormwater Engineers Field Study for Grades 4th–5th
In this field program, students actively engage in the engineering design process to tackle stormwater engineering problems. Students will use models of the landscape to identify stormwater problems, research the innovative work that engineers did around the treatment plant and then return to their models to test possible solutions. This program is designed for classes that are studying erosion, deposition, stormwater, and environmental engineering.
During the day, students will use an Engineering Design Process to:
As a result of this program, students will be able to:
Please note: This program DOES NOT include a treatment plant tour.
IslandWood is proud to partner with King County to provide exceptional learning experiences at the Brightwater Education Center, a state-of-the-art facility attached to King County’s newest and most innovative wastewater treatment plant in Woodinville.
For information about renting the Brightwater Center meeting rooms, or to set up a tour of King County’s state-of-the-art treatment plant, please visit the county’s Brightwater Center Webpage.
Programs are provided at no cost to schools and free transportation is available or reimbursable for those with 35% or greater free and reduced lunch rates. They are designed to last for four hours and can accommodate a maximum of 60 students.
If you’d like to get more information please contact KayLani Siplin at [email protected].
For questions about the program please contact KayLani Siplin at [email protected].
-Sue Sander, Teacherat Discovery Elementary School
King County has partnered with Islandwood to bring our four-hour programs to the South Treatment Plant in Renton. Our goal is to bring classroom learning to life, engaging students in experiential and project-based fieldwork that appeals to diverse learning styles.
We ask all schools to provide their own transportation to and from our programs. However, we have limited funding to provide free transportation through King County’s Wheels to Water Program. Wheels to Water can provide buses or reimburse your school for costs to provide your own bus. To qualify, your school must be at a minimum 35% free and reduced lunch rate as per OSPI.
Humans and the Water Cycle Program for 5th–6th Grades
What happens when we “borrow” water from the water cycle? What happens to this borrowed water after we use it in our homes, schools and businesses? In this program, students will learn how the choices they make on a daily basis impact the water cycle. Students experience the wastewater treatment plant firsthand and see how engineers have designed a system to clean our water and protect human and environmental health. This program is designed for classes that are studying human impacts on the water cycle, wastewater, water use and urban infrastructure. This program involves a tour of the Treatment Plant and is only for students aged 9 and up. Hard hats and vests will be provided for students. Closed-toe shoes are required for this program.
As part of their day, students will:
As a result of the program, students will be able to:
Stormwater Engineers Field Study for Grades 4th–5th
In this field program, students actively engage in the engineering design process to tackle stormwater engineering problems. Students will use models of the landscape to identify stormwater problems, research the innovative work that engineers did around the treatment plant and then return to their models to test possible solutions. This program is designed for classes that are studying erosion, deposition, stormwater, and environmental engineering.
During the day, students will use an Engineering Design Process to:
As a result of this program, students will be able to:
Please note: This program DOES NOT include a treatment plant tour.
IslandWood is proud to partner with King County to provide exceptional learning experiences at the South Treatment Plant in Renton.
South plant treats wastewater from homes and businesses coming from cities located east and south of Lake Washington. Approximately 90 million gallons a day (mgd) of wastewater is treated at this facility during the dry months and up to about 300 mgd flows can be treated during the rain/storm season.
Programs are provided at no cost to schools and free transportation is available or reimbursable for those with 35% or greater free and reduced lunch rates. They are designed to last for four hours and can accommodate a maximum of 60 students.
If you’d like to get more information please contact KayLani Siplin at [email protected].
For questions about the program please contact Katelyn Leeuw at [email protected].
-Brent Hinson, Teacher at Lowell Elementary
3 out of 4 teachers saw students making connections to the program months after participation
80% of teachers report that students made connections between the program and their home community
IslandWood acknowledges that we live and work on the ancestral land of the Coast Salish people, who have been stewards of this region's land and waters since time immemorial, and who continue to protect these lands and waters for future generations, as promised by the Point Elliott Treaty of 1855, the Treaty of Point No Point of 1855, and the Treaty of Medicine Creek of 1854.
While the majority of our work takes place on Suquamish (suq̀ʷabš) and Duwamish (dxʷdɐwʔabʃ) land, we also conduct programs on the land of the Snohomish (sduhúbʃ), Puyallup (spuyaləpabš), Muckleshoot (buklshuhls), Skokomish (sqoqc’bes), and S’Klallam (nəxʷsƛ̕ay̕əm) peoples.
4450 Blakely Ave. NE, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 206.855.4300
IslandWood is a registered 501c3 charitable organization.
A Special Thanks to our corporate sponsor