World Wetlands Day - February 2!

🌿 Celebrate World Wetlands Day

February 2 is World Wetlands Day — a perfect opportunity to help students connect what they learn about ecosystems, water, and sustainability to the world around them!

Wetlands in Colorado are a vital, yet often undervalued resource. While their extent is less than 2% of the land area, wetlands are some of Colorado's most important habitats — from cattail marshes along the South Platte River to alpine wet meadows in the Rockies. They clean our water, prevent flooding, and provide homes for frogs, birds, and beavers.

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💧 Did You Know?

• Wetlands act like natural water filters, trapping sediment and pollutants before they reach rivers.
• A single acre of wetland can store up to one million gallons of water during floods or snowmelt.
• Nearly 75% of Colorado's wildlife rely on wetlands at some point in their lives!

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💭 Classroom Connections

• Science Standard: 5th Grade – Organisms depend on their surroundings and each other for survival (SC.5.2.1).
• Local Relevance: Wetlands in Colorado help store water, filter pollutants, and support native species like herons, frogs, beavers, and dragonflies.
• Big Idea: Protecting wetlands helps create a sustainable future for both people and wildlife.

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🧪 Simple Classroom or Take-Home Activities

• Wetland in a Jar (Mini Ecosystem): Create a small model wetland using soil, sand, and water in a clear jar or container. Observe how the layers filter muddy water.
• Colorado Wetland Wildlife Match-Up: Print photos of local wetland species — frogs, red-winged blackbirds, cattails, dragonflies, and beavers — and have students match them to their habitat roles (pollinator, filterer, builder, etc.).
• Water Journey Mapping: Draw or map how snowmelt travels from mountains → streams → wetlands → rivers → reservoirs. Ask: What would happen if wetlands disappeared from that path?
• Protect-the-Pond Challenge: Have students brainstorm ways to protect wetlands near their community, such as reducing pollution, conserving water, or restoring habitats.

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💬 Discussion Starters

• How do wetlands help keep our rivers and lakes clean?
• Why do you think so many animals depend on wetlands?
• What can we do in Colorado to protect wetlands and water for the future?

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🔰Resources

• Colorado Natural Heritage Program - Educational Resources
• USEPA - Wetlands Education for Students and Teachers | US EPA
• Color-in Poster 

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🌎 Bring It Home

World Wetlands Day encourages students to think about how they can protect local wetlands — by conserving water, keeping litter out of storm drains, or visiting nearby nature areas to observe these vital ecosystems.

Every small action helps build a sustainable future — for our water, wildlife, and communities.🌿

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Youth Pollinator Summit - Free Tickets for Middle & High School Students

 

Free tickets available for middle and high school students to the Colorado Pollinator Network's inaugural Youth Pollinator Summit at CU Boulder's Museum of Natural History.

Apply Now for 2026 Camp Scholarships!

 

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Apply Now for 2026 Camp Scholarships!

We are so excited to announce that camp scholarship applications are now open! Thanks to the generosity of individual donors, corporations, and foundations, we can help make camp possible for families who qualify. While scholarships are not guaranteed, we do everything we can to support each family that applies.

Only fully completed applications will be considered, and applications are reviewed in two waves. Applying early is the best way to secure your spot! Families who are awarded scholarships in Round 1 will lock in their camper’s spot before general enrollment opens on January 14th, 2026.

Scholarship Timeline

Round 1
Application Closes: December 1st, 2025
Notification of Decision: December 20th, 2025

Round 2
Application Closes: March 1st, 2026
Notification of Decision: March 20th, 2026

Don’t wait! Start your application now to give your camper the best chance for support and a spot in the session they are most excited about.

Apply Here

¡Solicita ahora tu beca para el Campamento de 2026!

¡Estamos muy emocionados de anunciar que las solicitudes para las becas de campamento ya están abiertas! Gracias a la generosidad de donantes individuales, corporaciones y fundaciones, podemos ayudar a que más familias tengan la oportunidad de asistir al campamento. Aunque las becas no están garantizadas, hacemos todo lo posible para apoyar a cada familia que presenta una solicitud.

Sólo se aceptarán las solicitudes debidamente cumplimentadas, y estas se revisarán en dos rondas. ¡Aplicar pronto es la mejor manera de asegurar tu lugar! Las familias que reciban becas en la Primera Ronda asegurara el lugar de su campista antes de que la inscripción general abra el 14 de Enero del 2026.

Calendario de Becas

Primera Ronda
Cierre de Solicitud: 1 de Diciembre del 2025
Notificación de Decisión: 20 de Diciembre del 2025

Segunda Ronda
Cierre de Solicitud: 1 de Marzo de 2026
Notificación de Decisión: 20 de Marzo de 2026

¡No esperes más! Comienza tu solicitud hoy para darle a tu campista la mejor oportunidad de recibir apoyo y asegurar un lugar en la sesión que más le emocione.

¡Aplique Aqui!

World Toilet Day - November 19!

Every year, UN-Water — the UN's coordination mechanism on water and sanitation — sets the theme for World Toilet Day. In 2025, the theme is ‘Sanitation in a changing world', reminding us that no matter what the future holds, we'll always need the toilet.

Did you know the average toilet is one of the biggest water users in a home?

World Toilet Day is a great opportunity to show students how water, engineering, and health are all connected — and how a well-working toilet helps protect our rivers, our community, and the planet. 🌎🚽

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💭 Classroom Connections: Challenge students to think of ways to stop water waste at home or school. 

• Water Science: Discover how the water cycle doesn't end at the faucet — it includes what happens after we flush.
• Engineering: Discuss how toilets use gravity, pressure, and design to save water.
• Conservation: A single leaky toilet can waste up to 200 gallons of water a day! 

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🧪 Simple Activities

• Leak Detective Test:
  Add a few drops of food coloring or a dye tablet to a toilet tank. If the color shows up in the bowl without flushing, it’s leaking!
  (Encourage students to ask a grown-up to try this at home.)
• Toilet Timeline:
  Have students research how toilets have changed over time — from ancient latrines to modern water-saving models.
• Design Challenge:
  Ask: What would a “perfect toilet” look like for conserving water and keeping people healthy worldwide?

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💬 Discussion Starters

• Where does water go after it leaves your house or school?
• Why is clean water important for everyone?
• How can fixing or upgrading toilets save water in our community?

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🔰Resources

• Toilet Dye Tablets - Email Andrea Short at andrea.short@ThorntonCO.gov
• WaterAid - Free teaching resources
• Centers for Disease Control - Global Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH)
• United Nations - World Toilet Day | UN-Water

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🪠 Final Message

World Toilet Day helps students understand that every flush is part of their water story.

By keeping toilets in good working order and learning how they connect to clean water, students discover how small actions make a big difference.

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Imagine a Day Without Water - October 16!

Water is a shared resource that powers our community—our homes 🏡, schools 🏫, businesses🏢, and our health and well-being❤️

On October 16, we're observing Imagine A Day Without Water to highlight how water powers us.

Click the link to get involved. 

Activities & Worksheets

Download the PDFs linked below and print them at home or through a local print shop.

• Printable Activity Sheets for Kids (Color + B&W)

• Printable Coloring Sheets

• Printable Home Water Worksheet

Looking for lesson plans, field trip opportunities, or teacher workshops?

Explore the curated resources included below to bring water education to life in your classroom.

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💧Water Festival Presentation Resources 

    📂Downloadable Guides:

• A Place for Rain - Educator Guide
• Bird Conservancy - A Guide to Backyard Birds of the Front Range

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🏫Classroom & Student Activities    

🎲Interactive lessons, games, and classroom-ready materials:

• Water Science School | U.S. Geological Survey 🧰
• Wyland Foundation 🧰
• Project Wet 🧰 
• DiscoverWater.org 🎮
• NOAA Boulder 💻💁
• Metro Water Recovery 💻 🚌 🧰 
• Colorado Climate Center 💻 🚌 🧰 
• Environmental Protection Agency 💻🎮
• Check out "WaterSense" and "Drinking Water & Groundwater"
• Trout in the Classroom
• Basic start-up guide for a Salmon, Steelhead, or Trout in the Classroom program.

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🚌Field Trips & Reverse Field Trips

    ✋Hands-on, local, and experiential learning opportunities:

• Bird Conservancy of the Rockies -🍃
• Environmental Learning Kids 
• Denver Audubon 
• PaintCare's Youth Outreach 
• South Platte Renew - 🧰
• Zoo to You - Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance 🧰
• Check out "Make it Bloom" about Native Plants + Animals
• Butterfly Pavilion -🍃💁
• Denver Botanic Gardens - 💻💁

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🎓Teacher Professional Development

• Colorado Project WET | Colorado Water Center at CSU
• Metro Water Recovery
• Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance
• Denver Botanic Gardens
• Metropolitan State University - Water Studies online certificate
• Keystone Science School

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Miscellaneous

   🔧Renew Our Schools - Resource Central

    💬Water Education Exemplars Project - Colorado Stormwater Council

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These icons indicate additional offerings: 

💻virtual, 🚌field trip, 🧰download, 🎮game, 💁resources, 🍃afterschool club

Create. Inspire. Protect. - Wyland Challenge

 

October Kicks off the Wyland National Art Challenge! A fantastic opportunity for classmates to learn about conservation through creativity. Read more about the Wyland National Art and Mural Challenge Skip right to the TeachersGuide.pdf

Youth Water Festival

Hands-on water science for 5th graders

Free to schools. Bus transportation is provided. Interactive stations on water chemistry, aquatic life, local water systems, and conservation.

Next event: May 14, 2026   Capacity: 800 students   Target: 5th grade

Teacher Resources

What to expect

• 
  Interactive stations: water chemistry, aquatic life, local water supply, and conservation.
• Standards-aligned: activities mapped to NGSS/Colorado Academic Standards.
• Chaperone resources: pre-event teacher packet, station rotations, and assessment ideas.

How selection works

We receive many requests and can accommodate up to 800 students. Submit the registration form — schools will be selected and notified by email in December.

FAQs

• Can more than one class from a school attend?
• Typically, we can host one grade level per school. If you have a special request, please note it on the form, and we'll do our best to accommodate it where possible.
• What happens after I submit the form?
• You will receive a confirmation email. If selected, we'll send a packet with logistics, bus scheduling details, and teacher materials in the Spring.
• What should students bring?
• Bring a sack lunch, water bottle, and comfortable shoes for moving between stations.
• What time will the festival be?
• The Festival runs from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Buses will arrive at schools around 8:45 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. and will drop you off before 2:00 p.m.

*To be added to the announcement list, please complete the contact form.

Free for schools • Buses provided

2026 Water Festival Registration Open

 

Northglenn Thornton Westminster

2026 Water Festival

Thursday, May 14, 2026

The Water Festival is a fun, educational, and free experience for students, teachers, and parents. It is scheduled for Thursday, May 14, 2026, at Front Range Community College in Westminster. The partner Cities are covering the cost of the Festival and bus transportation, making it easy to attend! We would welcome your participation if this date doesn’t conflict with other end-of-year activities.

The Cities of Northglenn, Thornton, and Westminster are pleased to invite your class to our annual Water Festival! This science conference focuses on water in our world and other sustainability topics. While planned for fifth-grade classes, fourth-grade classes may attend if the festival curriculum is appropriate. Only one grade per school is allowed to attend.

The Water Festival will engage students with topics including water conservation, the history of Colorado water law, water chemistry, the water cycle, local water systems, weather, music, aquatic wildlife, and ecology. Students will enjoy hands-on activities while learning about local and global water issues.

Space is limited, and early registration is recommended.

To register online, click here.

Due to the popularity of the Water Festival, participating schools will be selected from all those who register, and we can only accommodate 800 students. Selected schools will receive a confirmation email before winter break in December.

We look forward to spending this day with you! Water resources are vital to our region and our children’s future.

New Basin Educational Infographics

 

New Basin Educational Infographics

The Colorado Water Conservation Board has developed new educational infographics for each of Colorado's river basins for public education and outreach use.  These infographics were developed in partnership with the basin roundtables and Public Education Participation & Outreach (PEPO) Basin Coordinators.  Both print and digital versions are available for public use. Basin Educational Infographics - Northglenn, Thornton, and Westminster are located within the South Platte Basin