Hungry Pests Service Learning Curriculum

Offering free resources and lesson plans is a great way to connect with and provide value to local partners and stakeholders! Below are some tips and a sample outreach plan than can help you engage educators and young people by sharing the Hungry Pests Service Learning Curriculum.

Youth in school clubs, after-school programs and youth organizations learn about invasive pests and take action through fun, interactive workshops that culminate in community awareness campaigns. Workshops are adaptable for different age groups, K-12.

Download one of the outreach kits listed then use the Outreach Stragety Tips below to promote the service learning curriculum throughout the year.

• Service Learning Curriculum
• Service Learning Curriculum (full outreach kit includes email and social media)
• Service Learning Curriculum Outreach Plan
• Promotional emails (Set of 6)
• Social media posts with images and suggested copy (Set of 6) with outreach calendar
• Grade Level K-5
  
• Grade Level 6-8
• Grade Level 9-12

Outreach Strategy Tips

Post across channels to increase effectiveness! To increase awareness and clicks, send an email communication and post aligned messages to social media

Time your posts: Current research shows that Tuesday or Wednesday between 9am and 1pm; as well as Saturdays are great times to share messaging

Make it easy for audiences to take the next step: Always include a link to the proper web page in each communication with a CTA (see suggested CTAs)

Plan your year round communications: Educators often plan programs during school breaks, their time off, so summer and holiday breaks can be good times to connect with them (see outreach calendar below for specific recommendations).

Calls to Action: Using effective calls to action (CTA) lets your audience know what to do next. In addition to the core CTAs below, customize them by highlighting valuable features such as: service learning, summer learning, free materials, etc.

Outreach #1: Back to school

July-August

• Email sharing educational resources
• Facebook post sharing educational resources
• Tweet sharing educational resources

Outreach #2: Promote the utility of the service learning curriculum

September/anytime

• Email highlighting the utility of the curriculum to youth programs
• Facebook post highlighting a fact about service learning and a call to action to download the kit
• Tweet with the same information

Outreach #3: Service learning curriculum raises awareness of invasive pests and plants

October/November

• Email focusing on the importance of raising awareness of invasive pests and plants
• Facebook post highlighting a fact about invasive pests and plants and a call to action to download the kit
• Tweet with the same information

Outreach #4: Service learning curriculum for youth and afterschool programs

February

• Email highlighting the utility of the curriculum for youth and after-school programs
• Facebook highlighting the importance of service learning
• Tweet with the same information

Outreach #5: Announce the start of Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month

April

• Email announcing start of Invasive Plants Pest and Disease Awareness Month
• Facebook post announcing start of Invasive Plants Pest and Disease Awareness Month
• Tweet with the same information

Outreach #6: Promote the utility of the Hungry Pests curriculum for summer programs

May/summer

• Email highlighting the utility of the curriculum for summer programs 
  
• Facebook post with a fact about the importance of summer learning
• Tweet with the same information