Description
Cookies in the Classroom
Free Educational Kits for Idaho Educators
Welcome to Cookies in the Classroom, a hands-on educational program designed to bring Idaho’s forests to life in your classroom. This free kit includes interactive resources to help
students learn about trees, forests, and the environment in an engaging and memorable way.
What’s Inside the Kit?
Each Cookies in the Classroom kit includes:
- 10 tree cross-sections (known as “cookies”)
- A guide of educational activities tailored for classroom use
- Informative materials about Idaho’s trees and forests
STEM Connections in Every Cookie
Science:
- Analyze growth rings to uncover a tree’s life story, including its age, growth conditions, and environmental stressors.
- Explore ecosystems by learning about the relationships between trees, fungi, beetles, and other forest organisms.
Technology:
- Use magnifying tools to examine tree cookies up close and observe details like growth patterns and fungal streaks.
- Discuss how technology like dendrochronology (the study of tree rings) helps scientists study climate history.
Engineering:
- Explore how forests are managed responsibly for future generations.
Math:
- Measure tree ring widths and calculate annual growth rates to understand the impact of environmental factors like drought and competition.
- Count and compare the number of rings to estimate the age of trees and make data-
driven observations.
