Learn About Forests

Engage middle school-aged youth in learning about trees, forests, and sustainable forest management with PLT’s ready-to-use, hands-on activities. Learn About Forests is a collection of 12 activities to engage youth in learning about sustainable forest management.

These 50-minute activities are perfect for non-educators, forest sector professionals, and even families, hosting community outreach, career days, or field site visits for youth. Each activity offers simple suggestions for leading-learners ages 10–16 in themes related to sustainable forest management, stewardship, and green careers, including:

• What is a Forest?
• Why do Forests Matter?
• How Do We Sustain Our Forests?
• What is Our Responsibility to Our Forests?

These themes and underlying concepts are outlined in PLT’s Forest Literacy Framework , a conceptual framework that aims to increase understanding and empowering actions by all for the benefit of our forests.

When working with teachers, select activities to complement topics or concepts taught in the classroom. When working with other audiences, choose activities based on topics of interest and your own objectives.

Tips for Working With Youth

You may not consider yourself an educator, yet sharing your expertise can provide youth with opportunities to learn about the important role that trees and forests play in our lives. When leading these activities with youth, keep in mind a few tips:

• Know your audience. The way you present these activities will change depending on the knowledge, skills, and prior experiences of your learners and even yourself! Play to everyone’s strengths as much as possible.
• Adapt activities to your specific situation and comfort level. Don’t feel like you have to follow activity instructions to the letter.
• Tell a captivating story. You might start each activity sharing a personal anecdote from your own experience.
• Be brief. Limit your instructions to two or three steps.
• Set boundaries. For outdoor activities, create and communicate clear physical boundaries that provide a safe environment.
• If you have questions, ask! It’s okay to let youth know you don’t have all the answers, and it’s okay to ask for help—or search the internet for answers.
• Model thinking skills. When the group discovers something unfamiliar, you might say, “I don’t know–let’s explore that together” or “What do you think is the best solution?”
• Silence is okay. Give youth adequate time to process information and respond.
• Focus on the experience. Try not to get bogged down in the details by encouraging youth to make their own observations, ask questions, and draw conclusions.

For more local support, contact your PLT State Coordinator for local resources and assistance, and connections to educators and resources professionals in your area.

Tips for Collaborating with Schools & Youth Group Leaders

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