Cool the Earth is an organization that reaches into elementary school classrooms and Girl Scout troops all over the country, and they're working to make saving energy and being good stewards of our natural resources fun. Participating schools are given a packet of materials to kick off the program with an all school assembly, where characters like Koda the polar bear, Earth, Mother Nature, and Mr. Carbon (boo! hiss!) introduce the topic of global warming and how human actions contribute to the problem. The kids are inspired to save Koda's icy homeland by getting rid of the villain Mr. Carbon.

The students are given a small book of action coupons to take home that recommend tips such as powering down home electronics that use energy when officially "off" but are still in standby mode by unplugging the device or turning off the power at a power strip. Students can earn rewards in the form of prize cards featuring Wasteful Wendy, Rennie Reusable and other characters, for actions such as getting their families to eat one pound less of beef in a week, thereby saving 130,000 gallons of water (the water to grow the crops to feed the cattle, and so on.)

Monthly highlights focus on a particular action, and an Action Banner tracks the progress of the whole school, charting the amount of energy saved and the amount of greenhouse gases avoided. School teachers can go online to access materials, get advice from the staff of Cool the Earth, or just brag about how their school is doing.

The program is working because it employs an age-old motivational strategy– get to the parents through their kids. And the results are tangible. The program so far can account for more than 25 million pounds of carbon emissions avoided. There are 149 schools involved in the program so far, and there is a waiting list for participation. Almost 23,000 students are involved– translating into many more thousands of parents, brothers, and sisters.

As many of us are aware, science education in California is in trouble. However, many of us also know there are amazing people and organizations working to improve the situation. The annual California Science Education Conference put on by the California Science Teachers' Association begins next week in San Jose. Science teachers from around the state will come together to learn from each other and experts in the field. Most will take personal time off from their teaching and pay conference registration and travel expenses out of their own pockets. Their dedication to improving science teaching and learning exemplifies what is going right and the sacrifices they have to make are a stark reminder of what is not working.

It is in honor of this annual gathering that QUEST takes time away from fact-based science stories to cover California's science future in a different way. In our upcoming broadcast of Science Under the Microscope: Science Struggles in Schools, QUEST Television looks at the severity of the science education problem, what schools are doing to fill the gap, meets innovative teachers and discovers creative methods being employed to get kids caught up. And I, the QUEST Education Producer, take a bit of time away from creating media-related science resources for educators to write this blog post.

There are, of course, countless ways for concerned citizens to pitch in. As a former high school science teacher the five suggestions below are my personal recommendations – resources I wish I had known about when I was teaching and things I now give as someone who cares about students' understanding of science.

Money

There are numerous websites now being developed that allow individuals to make contributions towards the needs of specific teachers. Sites like Digital Wish and DonorsChoose provide a means for teachers to register for particular items for their classroom (similar to a baby or wedding registry). The public can search these sites for schools and teachers in their area or for certain subject area needs (i.e. search for "science") to which they'd like to contribute.

Stuff

Want to be environmentally responsible and help science teachers at the same time? Donate items to organizations like Resource Area for Teachers (RAFT) in San Jose, the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse in Oakland, or Scroungers' Center for Reusable Art Parts (SCRAP) in San Francisco. Teachers are able to shop for a wide variety of items at discounted prices to use in their classrooms.

Time

Do you have a background or career in science? Find out if your local school district or county office of education has a science specialist and connect with them to offer your time or expertise. They will be able to put you in touch with teachers and schools in need of guest lecturers, tutors, or speakers for career day presentations.

Voice

Attend school board meetings, write articles, contribute to blogs, talk to friends about the state of science education.

Vote

Enough said.

Now it is your turn. What other ideas do you have for assisting our schools with science education? Science educators, what additional needs do you see as easy places for the public to get involved and what has worked in your districts, schools, classrooms, etc.? Clearly we need major reforms in our entire education system, but often it is the smaller contributions of individuals that make the most immediate change.

Watch the Under the Microscope: Science Struggles in Schools television story report online.