What is Litzsinger Road Ecology Center?
Litzsinger Road Ecology Center (LREC) is a resource for teachers who want to engage their students in ecological investigation and restoration in the local community while achieving formal curriculum objectives. The LREC site is a 34-acre ecology study area located in central St. Louis County and managed by Missouri Botanical Garden. It encompasses a variety of habitats including bottomland forest, restored prairie, and an urban creek. The site includes an indoor classroom and a computer lab. LREC was established as a research/education facility, and is closed to the public.

What do teachers and their students do at LREC?
Class visits to LREC help students become familiar with, and learn how to investigate, local natural habitats. Teachers learn how to engage their students in place-based education: using local ecology as a framework for studying a variety of subjects while interacting with the local community.

What is an LREC teacher partnership?
Teachers who partner with LREC are asked to commit to developing and using local outdoor learning spaces that are easily accessible to their students. Teacher training and curriculum/habitat development guidance are provided for the purpose of implementing schoolyard habitat studies into the curriculum. LREC will also provide student transportation between the school and the ecology center. LREC staff are prepared to assist with the development and implementation of a curriculum plan. This assistance may include:

• Integrating the field experiences into your curriculum
• Co-leading the field investigations
• Making effective use of the schoolyard or other outdoor spaces
• Developing your own outdoor teaching and learning skills

See current partnering schools.

See examples of field investigations.

Contact Information:

Litzsinger Road Ecology Center
292 East Ave. Suite 28
Webster Groves, MO 63119-1702
314-540-4068