Staff and Parent Resources
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Seal of Climate Literacy
Learn how schools can confer the Seal of Climate Literacy for high school graduates.
Teaching and Curriculum
Extensive curriculum and educational plans for student engagement ranging from general sustainability to nutrition, gardens, and more!
At-Home Learning
Find ways to make a difference outside the classroom and make sustainability improvements at home.
DPS Resource Library and Sustainability Programming
Resource library for tools and materials for hands-on sustainability and climate
change education in and around the classroom.
Grants
Look through available sustainability and environment-focused grants for the school or district.
Garden Grants
Garden-specific grant opportunity links.
Welcome Students!
With approximately 15,000 employees and 90,000 students, DPS is the largest school district in Colorado. The Sustainability Team is very lucky to have so many students, parents, teachers, and staff that support our youth in a livable future. Hopefully, some of the following resources will help support you.
Seal of Climate Literacy
Seal of Climate Literacy Guidebook
Guide for school leaders in implementing the Seal of Climate Literacy
Seal of Climate Literacy Student Flier
Share this flier with students to inform them about how to qualify for the Seal of Climate Literacy.
Seal of Climate Literacy
Learn more about the diploma endorsment.
North High
Teaching and Curriculum
Waste
Green Up Our Schools
Get funding and personalized sustainability consulting support to help your school reduce waste.
Consumption Literacy Project
Join a community of teachers and learn about different ways to teach about food systems, sustainability, waste reduction, and justice.
We Don’t Waste
Learn more about food waste audits and engage your students in a hands-on learning experience on food waste reduction, nutrition, hunger, and more. Hosts educational field trips and volunteer opportunities!
Denver Waste DPS Partnership
Work with the City to teach your students about waste reduction and learn more about the partnership between DPS and Denver to increase recycling and composting.
Biodiversity and Gardens
Denver Botanic Gardens – Schools and Teachers and Children and Family Programs
Take a field trip to the Botanic Garden and help your kids grow their science skills, plant knowledge, and appreciation for the natural world.
National Wildlife Federation Educational Resources
Bring the natural world to your kids with NWF lesson plans, activities, and other resources on wildlife, wild places, and conservation.
SustainEd Farms
Develop curriculum on sustainable farming practices, nutrition, and food justice and get your kids in the garden with SustainEd Farms.
Kiva Center
Help your kids build connections with each other and nature through hands-on workshops and programs on environmental stewardship.
Partners in Urban Agriculture
The Urban Farm
Take a field trip to inspire students to engage with local food systems through a hands-on urban agriculture experience.
Denver Urban Gardens
Find interactive garden-related curriculum and other educational ideas.
Sprout City Farms
One of our garden partners who’ve helped us build our school gardens!
Slow Food Denver
Find educational workshops and programming on urban agriculture, nutrition, food justice, and more for students.
Big Green
Big Green provides a number of gardening curriculum, activities, videos, and lesson plan resources as well as support for developing a garden team at your school.
DPS Garden and Agriculture Materials
DPS Garden Manual
Learn more about how DPS maintains its gardens.
DPS Garden to Cafeteria
Learn more about how DPS uses its harvested produce!
DPS Urban Farms
Learn more about DPS’s urban agriculture efforts.
DPS Honey Bee Protocol
Bees are a very important part of our ecosystem! They pollinate plants which makes sure our flowers bloom and our fruits and vegetables grow. This protocol explains how DPS keeps bees.
DPS Goat Protocol
Livestock provide our society with meat, milk, fiber for cloth and other uses, and more. Goats also help us by eating food scraps! This protocol explains how DPS keeps goats.
- Dwarf goats arrive in DPS – Press Release
DPS Chicken Protocol
Chickens are an important source of eggs and meat! This protocol explains how DPS keeps chickens.
Nutrition Guides
DPS Food and Nutrition Services website | DPS Health and Wellness Policy
Visit our friends at Food and Nutrition Services to see what sustainability initiatives they’re undertaking and what’s new with their gardening efforts!
Denver Healthy Food for Denver’s Kids
In 2018, residents of the City of Denver voted to increase taxes to fund a healthy food and food-based education at DPS. Learn more about the City-wide initiative!
State of Colorado Department of Education Nutrition Resources Hub
DPS’s school meals are required to follow regulations set by our partners at the State Department of Education, who in turn support us in many ways, including with this great list of nutrition and food-related resources.
CDPHE Nutrition Programs
The State of Colorado Department of Public Health and Education provides great resources and programs to help families access proper nutrition and healthy food.
USDA Child Nutrition Programs Hub
DPS is also required to follow federal-level regulations on school meals and nutrition. The US Department of Agriculture also supports families with children through a variety of nutrition and healthy foods programs.
General Sustainability
Green Education Foundation
Develop interactive curriculum and programs on sustainability and green building as well as free programming to get your students excited! (National online resource)
EPA Environmental Resource Portal
Find quality homework resources, lesson plans, and interactive project ideas for learning and teaching about the environment.
Love My Air
Participate in Denver’s Love My Air program to get lesson plans, presentations, and actionable data on local air quality.
Climate Change
Climate.gov Teaching Resources
Find a myriad of teaching resources on any climate-related topic you could possibly think of!
Our Climate Our Future
A video series developed by Action for the Climate Emergency, geared towards educating students on the science of climate change and inspiring and empowering them to take action.
Energy
USGBC Learning Pathway
An online education hub for teachers to access hands-on curriculum and resources to encourage student leadership, sustainability literacy, and real-world action.
PowerED Student Engagement
As part of the State of Colorado’s largest-ever Energy Performance Contract right here at DPS, students are encouraged to be a leader in our efforts to save energy at our schools! Find out about power-saving strategies and more, including how to participate in the Action Hub linked above. Learn more about the program in this Press Release.
Water
Denver Water Youth Education Programs
Find resources on how to teach students about water in Colorado, Denver’s water systems, and water conservation, including a comprehensive water education resource guide.
Learn more about DPS’s Recycled Water Use with Denver Water – Press Release on Purple Pipes Installation
Lena Archuleta Elementary
At-Home Learning
Big Green at Home
Learn with your kids how to garden, cook with your produce, and engage with your local food systems.
Cooking Matters
Learn to shop smarter, make healthier choices, and cook delicious, affordable meals with your kids!
Xcel Energy E-Smart Kid
A comic book-themed hub for learning about electricity, energy science, and safety through a variety of activities, games, and videos.
Resource Central
Learn with your kids all about saving water, reducing waste, and conserving energy from this Boulder-based nonprofit!
Fairmont Elementary
DPS Resource Library and Sustainability Programming
Educators, take a look at our resource library for tools and materials for hands-on sustainability and climate change education. Reach out to dept_sustainability@dpsk12.net to request any library item or to schedule a virtual or in person class speaker or demonstration.
Class set of Energy Audit Kits
Garden Workday Tool Trailer
Seeds Starting Kits and Lights for school with 65%+ FRL
Recycling Refresher
Cafeteria Composting
Garden Composting
Seedling Starting (Spring Semester)
Seed Harvesting (Fall Semester)
Garden to Cafeteria Program
School Energy Audits
Water Audits
Waste Audits
Collegiate Prep Academy
General Sustainability Grants
Let us know when you apply. We can support and guide you through the process and track the wonderful things you are doing for our students and community.
Westerra Credit Union School Grants
Whole Kids Foundation
Green Strides
DPS Foundation A-Z Grant
National Science Foundation STEM Technology Grant
Education First Grant
Albertsons / Safeway Foundation
DCIS Montbello
Garden Grants
Healthy Food For Denver’s Kids Grant
A 2018 Denver Ballot measure, (HFDK) Initiative proposed to increase taxes to establish a fund for healthy food and food-based education for Denver’s youth.
Denver Community Active Living Coalition
Micro-grant of up to $1000 due April 1st annually. Apply to this grant if you have an idea of how to support walkability, bikeability, or access to safe and healthy spaces for physical activity!
Colorado Garden Foundation
Letter of Intent due August 30th annually.
Great Outdoors Colorado Grant
Due mid-August annually.
Sprouts Neighborhood Grant
Opens April 1st, due June 1st annually.
National Garden Bureau Therapeutic Garden Grant
Due July 1st annually.
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
Multiple grant opportunities due between October and November annually.
Seed Money Grants for Garden Projects
Due early November.
KidsGardening.org
Has several grant opportunities with multiple due dates.
HerbSociety.Org
Has annual $300 grants to start an herb garden for grades 3-6. Applications due October 1st.
American Heart Association
Has annual grants for teaching gardens. Applications open each fall.
WildOnes.org Seeds for Education
Annual grant for native and sensory plants. Open July 15th – October 15th.
Whole Kids Foundation School Garden Grant
$3,000 Typically opens mid-February, due mid-March.
Bee Cause Grant
The Bee Grant program allows for a school or non-profit organization to receive support for an educational live bee program.
Ellis Elementary