Teen Teachers - ECO - University of Illinois Extension Grundy & Kankakee County Educator Updates

Teen Teachers - ECO Program

TEEN TEACHERS ARE WELCOME FOR ALL ECO PROGRAMS! There's no charge as you are helping. Just sign up for the program and select "Teen Teacher" for participant type. Once you register as a Teen Teacher, I will email you the lesson plan and you can pick what you would like to help with or you can propose other ideas.

DON'T SEE WHAT YOU WANT? If you don't see a program that you are interested in, email me a proposal of what you want to do.

A special welcome to our ECO Teen Teachers so far...

Grundy County - Jillian, Madison, Sarah
Kankakee County -
Will County - Ben

Teen Teacher - Teaching "Levels"

Teens will progress through the Teen Teacher (TT) program according to their skill level, confidence and by meeting set criteria.
There are 5 levels of Teen Teachers in Grundy, Kankakee and Will County (GKW). The program may be different in other counties and states.

Level 1 – Teen Teacher Trainee
- Teens have completed the One-Day Teen Teacher Training
- Teens assist educators with programs (TT choose involvement they are comfortable with):
  - Attend the workshop and assist with the program as directed by the Educator - this might be doing games at the beginning or end, or assisting educator where needed during the program.
  - Lead a designated portion of the workshop with the guidance of the Educator (from start to finish). For example, if you are doing the Plant Terrarium program, you might lead the section about "What is a terrarium" or "What is plant propagation?"
  - Run the Educator created program from start to finish with the guidance of the Educator. This would be actually starting the program, running the program and finishing the program.
- To advance to level 2, teens must complete 6 hours of teaching with the guidance of an educator
Level 2 – Teen Teacher Apprentice
- Teen Teachers will work with educators to develop programs and will take the lead on teaching with the guidance of an educator
- To advance to level 3, teens must:
  - Successfully develop a program
  - Teach the program
  - Complete an evaluation
  - Revise the program based on evaluations and feedback
Level 3 – Teen Teacher
- Teen Teachers are now on their own! They will create and lead programs, with the guidance of an educator, in their desired field. Educators will be there to assist as needed.
- To advance to level 4, teens must :
  - Successfully develop at least 4 programs, teach them, complete evaluations, and revise the programs.
  - Review, the Teen Teacher guide, provide feedback, assist with a Teen Teacher Training
  - Complete a successful interview with an educator and be recommended to advance to level 4.
Level 4 – Teen Teacher Trainer
- Teen Teachers will assist educators in training Teen Teachers
- To advance to level 5, teens must:
  - Attend at least two Teen Teacher training workshops and lead at least 50% of the training.
  - Complete a successful interview with an educator and be recommended to advance to level 5.
Level 5 – Teen Teacher Expert
- Teen Teachers will lead Teen Teacher training with the support of educators
- CONGRATULATIONS!!!! You are well on your way to becoming an amazing teacher!

Youth are not required to complete the Teen Teacher program to run events and activities at their club, at the fair, etc. But, to be considered an official “Teen Teacher” through our unit (Grundy, Kankakee and Will Counties), teens must go through this program and follow the steps above.

Save-the-Dates

Welcome Teen Teachers!

Interested in being a Teen Teacher for our ECO (Environmental, (Wildlife) Conservation and Outdoor (Adventures and Skills) program? The Teen Teachers program for Grundy, Kankakee and Will County divides the ECO Teen Teacher program into the following two broad categories that sometimes overlap:

Environment, Wildlife, & Conservation (Natural Science)
- Physical Sciences – energy, chemical reactions, etc. to include physics, chemistry, astronomy
- Life Sciences – living organisms, wildlife, etc. to include botany, zoology, genetics and medicine
- Earth and Space Sciences – weather and climate, natural resources, etc. to include geology, oceanography, paleontology and meteorology
Outdoor Skills Programs
- Outdoor Skills would include programs that focus on a particular skills such as fire building, map reading, shelter building, shooting sports, etc.
- Outdoor Adventures would include outdoor fun “activities” such as kayaking, camping, orienteering, geocaching, etc.

Whether you are just beginning or have been doing the Teen Teacher program for a while, you’ll find there will be plenty of programs for your to choose from. As you progress through the Teen Teacher “teaching” portion of the program, you we see you skills and confidence in teaching develop and progress each time you assist or teach. Remember, YOU choose the level of teaching you are comfortable with. If you are quiet and want to sit back and work with small groups to start, that’s fine. If you are outgoing and love to talk, lead games, and present, you are welcome to “take charge” and be more active. Just let me know what you are comfortable with.

If you want to teach at any of the programs, you must register for the program and select “Teen Teacher” as your participant choice. Once complete, I will email you with the information for the program and you can choose what you would like to and are comfortable teaching.

Expectations of the ECO Teen Teachers. Teen Teachers agree to:

Register for the program online.
Email / contact the educator for further instructions.
Review all materials at least 2 days prior to the program.
Arrive at the location at least 30 minutes prior to the program to review materials with the educator.
Provide constructive feedback to the educator (What went well and what can be improved).
Submit an evaluation within 3 days of the program.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact me via email SLRange@illinois.edu or via my cell (texts welcome and encouraged) at 630-772-7573.