London Middle School sixth-grade science teacher Tracy Crowley has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the National Education Association Foundation to expand a global science storytelling initiative focused on wildlife conservation and student collaboration.
Crowley received the Learning & Leadership grant for her Wildlife HomeStories project, which will fund a research trip to Kenya in July to study ecosystems and climate change alongside naturalists and scientists in collaboration with National Geographic. The work will help shape a curriculum designed for global classrooms, including all sixth-grade students at London.
“I really did not expect this to happen,” Crowley said. “I submitted on a whim and can’t believe it came through.”
While in Kenya, Crowley will work with local experts to develop learning experiences that help students build empathy skills by “stepping into the shoes” of endangered wildlife. The curriculum will also explore climate change and ecosystem health through field-based research and storytelling.
The Wildlife HomeStories project is part of a broader effort to connect students through narrative science writing using the ESRI/Out of Eden Walk HomeStories Map, a digital platform associated with National Geographic funded Out of Eden Walk. .
Crowley said the grant will also help expand partnerships with schools in Kenya and other African countries, with additional plans to collaborate with schools in Canada. Students will exchange conservation ideas and stories while building global awareness of environmental challenges.
Locally, the project will continue to grow its partnership with the Illinois Forest Preserves, where students will engage in field-based learning with naturalists and environmental experts. Crowley said there is also interest in developing a community showcase or public event highlighting student work.
Natalie Milo-Nicolisan, assistant principal at London, helped spark a key local partnership for the project after connecting Crowley with an incoming family involved in forest preserve education.
At the school’s recent incoming sixth-grade night, Milo-Nicolisan met a parent who works in the education department for the Cook County Forest Preserve. Seeing Crowley nearby, she said the connection was too important to pass up.
“I immediately looked up and saw Tracy walking our way and said, ‘We must loop Ms. Crowley into this conversation,’” Milo-Nicolisan said. “After a conversation with the two of them, it was clear this was a serendipitous meeting for the ages.”
Crowley said the goal of Wildlife HomeStories is to help students develop empathy, scientific understanding and a sense of global responsibility by connecting classroom learning with real-world ecosystems and conservation work.
“Students need to research and then use empathy to imagine what home should be like for these wildlife and tell a heartfelt story that drives action,” she added.
Looking ahead, she hopes to build a global curriculum network connecting classrooms through shared storytelling and conservation learning.
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