Crystal Cove Conservancy’s free STEM education programs engage science learners of all ages in exploring Crystal Cove’s diverse ecosystems. As you help Crystal Cove Conservancy, Crystal Cove State Park, and UC Irvine monitor our underwater ecosystem or study the best way to restore Moro Canyon, you’ll learn about how we can use science ideas to protect our wild places.
Each program includes curriculum for guided or self-directed lessons and opportunities to take part in field trips to Crystal Cove.
We also offer free online workshops for educators to prepare you to deliver the program to your students!
If you are a teacher or other educator and would like to find out more about incorporating the programs listed below into your classroom, please fill out our survey here or contact Chelsea, Education Manager, by emailing chelsea@crystalcove.org.
Elementary School STEM Programs
- Project Crystal (5th grade): Young scientists learn about plant ecology and food webs as they partner with a UC Irvine researcher to investigate how best to help native plants grow.
- Explore at Home Investigations (2-5th grade): These short, standalone investigations invite students and their families to use a science journal as they explore in and around their home! Materials are provided in English and Spanish.
- Trouble with Trash (K-2nd grade): Young scientist and engineers investigate the seen and unseen impacts of trash pollution within our communities and beaches to learn how to protect our beaches and ecosystems.
Middle & High School STEM Field Trips
- Project Crystal Code (Middle School): How can we use technology to protect our wild spaces? Project Crystal Code builds on ideas from Project Crystal as participants use coding and build sensors to investigate how mulch decomposes.
- MPA Science Exploration (Middle & High School): Help us monitor the Crystal Cove State Marine Conservation Area and determine how the ecosystem there is changing! This field trip is on a boat on the ocean with our partners at Newport Landing Sportfishing.
- Coastal Dynamics (Middle & High School): Step into the shoes of an environmental engineer as you help us understand how Crystal Cove’s beaches are changing and what we can do to protect them!
- Environmental Challenges (Middle & High School): In each of these standalone activities, students analyze real-world data from a monitoring project in Crystal Cove State Park. Different challenges address NGSS Science & Engineering practices, including designing a model, using computational thinking, and testing and evaluating a solution.