Neighborhood House

Outdoor/Environmental Education (OEE), a Neighborhood House cornerstone, is integrated into all of the organization’s programs, providing educational and enrichment activities for early-childhood, elementary, middle, and high school students. Activities take place at NH’s Certified School Yard Habitat, Science Lab, and 90-acre Nature Center in Dodge County, as well as at the Lynden Hill urban green space and Milwaukee Public Schools. The OEE curriculum, Nature Time, is authored by NH staff for use in urban and rural settings. Nature Time complies with Wisconsin’s model for academic standards in environmental education and national science standards. It also effectively integrates field experiences with classroom curriculum for a comprehensive understanding of the environment and science.

NH’s unique learning centers bustle year ‘round with well-planned OEE curricula that includes fascinating exercises like growing plants with worm poop, building and blowing up volcanoes, camping out and studying the stars and birds and plants, canoeing, hiking, gardening and composting and cooking NH’s organic produce, field trips to the Crane Foundation, the Zoo, (and maybe even the Smithsonian in the future!) and maple sugaring and snow-shoeing in winter. All curricula illuminate the cycle of life and our role in it, and how to be conscientious global citizens. NH’s OEE curricula is so recognized that our staff teaches it in MPS schools weekly and has published two 200-page books with illustrated lesson plans of the NH curricula!

NH’s flourishing OEE program is further enhanced by fertile partnerships with many organizations like the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, America’s Outdoors, Schlitz Audubon, the Urban Ecology Center, and many others. By joining forces with several schools, the Urban Tree House at Lynden Hill and our fabulous Nature Center, Neighborhood House ensures its circle of friends spreads throughout the community.