Resources for Educators

Web sites for educators teaching the natural history of the Hudson Valley

Teaching the Hudson Valley
Launched in 2003, Teaching the Hudson Valley (THV) helps educators discover appreciate, and share the region’s natural, historic, and cultural treasures with children and youth. THV fosters collaboration among schools, museums, parks, historic sites, art galleries, libraries, and other groups. THV’s growing collection of free K-12 lesson plans uses significant Valley sites to teach virtually all subjects.

Catskill Center for Conservation and Development
The Catskills: A Sense of Place – 2009 Revised Edition A series of curriculum guides on the Catskill Mountain Region, this five module resource helps teachers enliven and enrich their lessons, and instill a sense of Catskill Mountain regional pride in their students.

Hudson River Valley Institute
Regional history, educational resources, literature, science & environment, etc.

A Virtual Trip on the Historic Hudson River
Text and links based upon William Wade’s Panorama of the Hudson River, 1846. A Web site for students, educators, and those interested in the history, culture, and conservation of the Hudson River Valley.

Hudson River History
Information about the events, people, and places that make the Hudson River heritage rich.

Forsyth Nature Center
The City of Kingston Parks and Recreation Department offers year-round environmental education and nature based programming in all of its city parks and nearby natural areas.

Department of Environmental Conservation – Norrie Point
Programs focus on hands-on, inquiry-based learning involving current science. Note: Some programs are for students in the 6th grade and older.
Online resources (i.e. information about New York State’s habitats, animals, and plants) are also available on this site.

Clearwater
Land and boat education programs are adaptable to students. Materials for educators (i.e., lesson plans, multimedia, and an educator log), in connection with programs, are available.

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The New York State Young Birders Club (NYSYBC)

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is a special project of The New York State Ornithological Association (NYSOA).


Learn About Butterflies and Supporting Pollinators


Naturalist Books

TITLES ALREADY IN THE KINGSTON SCHOOL SYSTEM (116)
(These titles are suitable for upper elementary and middle school grades.)

The Young Naturalist by Andrew Mitchell (2008)

John Muir: America’s Naturalist by Thomas Locker (2010)

The Robin Makes a Laughing Sound: A Birder’s Journal by Sallie Wolf (2010)

Park Naturalist
333.78 Daw Dawson, Jim, 1949-
Published 1999

Riverkeeper
333.91 ANC Ancona, George.
Published 1990

Saving birds : heroes around the world
333.95 SAL Salmansohn, Pete, 1947-
Published 2003

A day in the life of a park ranger
363.6 BUR Burby, Liza N.
Published 1999

Field trips : bug hunting, animal tracking, bird-watching, shore walking with Jim Arnosky.
508 Arn Arnosky, Jim.
Published 2002

This is our earth
508 Ben Benson, Laura Lee, 1963-
Published 1994

Planet Earth news presents nature shockers
508 Tho Thomas, Keltie, 1966-
Published 2005

Before & after : a book of nature timescapes
508 THO ENF Thornhill, Jan.
Published 1997

Discovering careers for your future. Nature
508.023 DIS [Carol Yehling, editor].
Published 2002

One day in the woods
508.747 Geo George, Jean Craighead, 1919-
Published 1995

New York plants and animals
508.747 Ste Stewart, Mark, 1960-
Published 2003

Eyewitness books : rocks & minerals
552 SYM written by R.F. Symes and the staff of the Natural History Museum, London ; [special photography, Colin Keates and Andreas Einsiedel].
Published 1988

Living things
570 MAD Madgwick, Wendy, 1946-
Published 1999

A visit to the natural history museum
574 ZIE Ziegler, Sandra, 1938-
Published 1988

Plants on the trail with Lewis and Clark
581.978 PAT Patent, Dorothy Hinshaw.
Published 2003

Sky tree : seeing science through art
582.16 Loc Locker, Thomas, 1937-
Published 1995

Animals and nature : Scholastic reference.
591 ANI
Published 1995

The National Audubon Society North American birdfeeder handbook
598 BUR Burton, Robert, 1941-
Published 1992

100 things you should know about birds
598 JOH Johnson, Jinny.
Published 2006

Backyard birds
598 LAT Latimer, Jonathan P.
Published 1999

Songbirds
598 LAT Latimer, Jonathan P.
Published 2000

Peterson first guide to birds of North America
598 PET Peterson, Roger Tory, 1908-
Published 1986

About birds : a guide for children
598 SIL Sill, Cathryn P., 1953-
Published 1991

National Audubon Society first field guide. Birds
598 Wei Weidensaul, Scott.
Published 1998

Backyard bird watching for kids : how to attract, feed, and provide homes for birds
598.07 HAR Harrison, George H.
Published 1997

Audubon : painter of birds in the wild frontier
598.09 ARM Armstrong, Jennifer.
Published 2003

Capturing nature : the writings and art of John James Audubon
598.092 AUD Audubon, John James, 1785-1851.
Published 1993

On the wing : American birds in migration
598.156 Ler Lerner, Carol.
Published 2001

Flute’s journey – the life of a wood thrush / written and illustrated by Lynne Cherry.
598.4 CHE Cherry, Lynne.
Published 1997

Hummingbirds
598.7 Kal Kalz, Jill.
Published 2003

Woodpeckers
598.7 WIN Winner, Cherie.
Published 2000

Blue sky bluebird
598.8 CHr Chrustowski, Rick.
Published 2004

Cardinals
598.8 GER Gerholdt, James E., 1943-
Published 1997

Robins
598.8 kal Kalz, Jill.
Published 2003

Sparrows
598.8 POS Post, Hans, 1959-
Published 2008

Cardinals
598.8 STO Stone, Lynn M.
Published 1998

Finches
598.8 STO Stone, Lynn M.
Published 1998

Orioles
598.8 STO Stone, Lynn M.
Published 1998

Hawk highway in the sky : watching raptor migration
598.9 Arn Arnold, Caroline.
Published 1997

Owls : whoo are they?
598.9 JAR Jarvis, Kila, 1965-
Published 1996

Raptors
598.9 Kal Kalman, Bobbie, 1947-
Published 1998

City hawk : the story of Pale Male
598.9 MCC McCarthy, Meghan.
Published 2007

The true story of Stellina
636.6 Kno Pericoli, Matteo, 1968-
Published 2006

In good hands : behind the scenes at a center for orphaned and injured birds
639.9 Swi Swinburne, Stephen R.
Published 1998

Take a hike! : the Sierra Club kid’s guide to hiking and backpacking
796.5 Fos Foster, Lynne, 1937-
Published 1991

Hudson River : an adventure from the mountains to the sea
797.1 LOU Lourie, Peter.
Published 1998

The Earth is painted green : a garden of poems about our planet
808.819 Ear edited by Barbara Brenner ; illustrated by S.D. Schindler.
Published 1994

Home : a journey through America
810.8 HOM illustrated by Thomas Locker ; edited by Thomas Locker and Candace Christiansen.
Published 1998

Don’t step on the sky : a handful of haiku
811 CHA Chaikin, Miriam.
Published 2002

A chill in the air : nature poems for fall and winter
811 FRA Frank, John.
Published 2003

A tree place and other poems
811 LEV Levy, Constance.
Published 1994

Feathers : poems about birds
811 SPI Spinelli, Eileen.
Published 2004

Nature’s paintbox : a seasonal gallery of art and verse
811 THO Thomas, Patricia, 1934-
Published 2007

Snow toward evening : a year in a river valley : nature poems
811.008 SNO selected by Josette Frank ; paintings by Thomas Locker.
Published 1990

Voices on the wind : poems for all seasons
811.008 Voi selected by David Booth ; illustrated by Michèle Lemieux.
Published 1990

Handsprings : poems & paintings
811.54 Flo Florian, Douglas.
Published 2006

Today at the Bluebird Café : a branchful of birds
811.54 Rud Ruddell, Deborah.
Published 2007

Into the deep forest with Henry David Thoreau
917.412 MUR Murphy, Jim, 1947-
Published 1995

Hudson river : an adventure from the mountains to the sea
917.47 Lou Lourie, Peter.
Published 1992

Girls who looked under rocks : the lives of six pioneering naturalists
920 ATK Atkins, Jeannine, 1953-
Published 2000

United tweets of America
973 Tal Talbott, Hudson.
Published 2008

Animals on the trail with Lewis and Clark
973.4 PAT Patent, Dorothy Hinshaw.
Published 2002

A river ran wild : an environmental history
974.4 Che Cherry, Lynne.
Published 1992

The natural history of New York
974.7 Fre Freeman, Stan.
Published 2002

Tales from the Shawangunk Mountains : a naturalist’s musings : a bushwhacker’s guide
974.7 Fri Fried, Marc B.
Published 1981

On this spot : an expedition back through time
974.7 Goo Goodman, Susan E., 1952-
Published 2004

Niagara Falls
974.7 TIE Tieck, Sarah, 1976-
Published 2008

The Hudson River
974.7 WOO Wood, Ian.
Published 2004

Hello, harvest moon
6T-E F Fletcher, Ralph J.
Published 2003

Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution
92 Dar Adamson, Heather, 1974-
Published 2008

Henry David’s house
AR BIO Tho Thoreau, Henry David, 1817-1862.
Published 2002

Into the woods : John James Audubon lives his dream
B AUD Burleigh, Robert.
Published 2003

John Burroughs : boy of field and stream
B BUR Frisbee, Lucy Post.
Published 1964

John Burroughs, the sage of Slabsides
B BUR Wadsworth, Ginger.
Published 1997

With John Burroughs in field and wood
B BUR Kelley, Eliz.

Charles Darwin and evolution
B DAR Parker, Steve.
Published 1992

John Muir
B Mui Mara, Wil.
Published 2002

The tree of life : a book depicting the life of Charles Darwin, naturalist, geologist & thinker
BIO Dar Sís, Peter, 1949-
Published 2003

Jean Craighead George
BIO Geo Cary, Alice.
Published 1996

John Muir : at home in the wild
BIO Mui Talmadge, Katherine S.
Published 1993

John Muir : saving the wilderness
BIO Mui Naden, Corinne J.
Published 1992

Henry David Thoreau : in step with nature
BIO Tho Ring, Elizabeth, 1920-
Published 1993

All about birds
[ Film/Video ] DVD 11 director, John Burrud ; Burrud.
Published 2006

He’s got the whole world in his hands …and more stories to celebrate the environment
[ Film/Video ] DVD E HES Weston Woods presents ; produced by Paul R. Gagne, Melissa Reilly ; directed by Melissa Reilly.
Published 2010

A whiff of pine, a hint of skunk : a forest of poems
E 811 RUD Ruddell, Deborah.
Published 2009

Secret place
E BUN Bunting, Eve, 1928-
Published 1996

Butterfly count
E COL Collard, Sneed B.
Published 2002

On Meadowview Street
E COL Cole, Henry, 1955-
Published 2007

On the way to the beach
E COL Cole, Henry, 1955-
Published 2003

Dear Rebecca, winter is here
E Geo George, Jean Craighead, 1919-
Published 1993

To climb a waterfall
E GEO George, Jean Craighead, 1919-
Published 1995

Our big home : an earth poem
E GLA Glaser, Linda.
Published 2000

Earth Mother
E Jac Jackson, Ellen B., 1943-
Published 2005

Henry builds a cabin
E Joh Johnson, D. B. (Donald B.), 1944-
Published 2002

Henry climbs a mountain
E JOH Johnson, D. B. (Donald B.), 1944-
Published 2003

Henry hikes to Fitchburg
E JOH Johnson, Donald B., 1944-
Published 2000

Henry works
E JOH Johnson, D. B. (Donald B.), 1944-
Published 2004

She’s wearing a dead bird on her head!
E LAS Lasky, Kathryn.
Published 1995

Where the river begins
E LOC Locker, Thomas, 1937-
Published 1984

Quiet, please
E Mer Merriam, Eve, 1916-
Published 1993

The trouble with Henry : a tale of Walden Pond
E ONE O’Neal, Deborah.
Published 2005

Canoe days
E PAU Paulsen, Gary.
Published 1999

Fighting for the forest
E Ran Rand, Gloria.
Published 1999

Wild birds
E RYD Ryder, Joanne.
Published 2003

Scarecrow
E RYL Rylant, Cynthia.
Published 2001

A nest for Celeste : a story about art, inspiration, and the meaning of home
FIC COL Cole, Henry, 1955-
Published 2010

My side of the mountain
FIC GEORGE George, Jean Craighead, 1919-
Published 1988

In blue mountains : an artist’s return to America’s first wilderness
FIC Loc Locker, Thomas, 1937-
Published 2000

Shelterwood
FIC SHE Shetterly, Susan Hand, 1942-
Published 1999

Watching water birds
PB 598.176 ARN Arnosky, Jim.
Published 2002

Raptor! : a kid’s guide to birds of prey
REF 598.9 LAU Laubach, Christyna M.
Published 2002

The Hudson River : a natural and unnatural history
REF 917.47 BOY Boyle, Robert H.
Published 1979

The flora of Ulster County, New York; an annotated list of vascular plants,
Ref Dom Domville, Mary.
Published 1970

Charles Darwin and the Beagle adventure : countries visited during the voyage round the world of HMS Beagle
REF.508.8 WOO Wood, A. J.
Published 2009

The Hudson : the story of a river
REF.974.7 Bar Baron, Robert C.
Published 2004

River of dreams : the story of the Hudson River
REF.974.7 Tal Talbott, Hudson.
Published 2009

TITLES NOT IN THE KINGSTON SCHOOL SYSTEM (but will be purchased this winter):

The Young Naturalist by Andrew Mitchell (2008)

John Muir: America’s Naturalist by Thomas Locker (2010)

The Robin Makes a Laughing Sound: A Birder’s Journal by Sallie Wolf (2010)