With support from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Mathematics Gulf Research Program, the Louisiana Children’s Museum has offered the "Living with Water program in the museum, in the classroom, and throughout the greater New Orleans community. Living with Water is a place-based environmental education program designed to supplement traditional K-8 classroom learning by engaging children in hands-on activities that build water and environmental literacy skills as an important first step to becoming problem-solvers for future environmental needs. Living with Water learning is based in Southeast Louisiana, specifically in Orleans and Jefferson Parish K-5 schools and at LCM’s state-of-the-art sustainable facility and expansive indoor/outdoor campus in New Orleans City Park. 

Living with Water includes three components: 1) classroom experiences for grades K - 5, 2) A summer camp for grades 6 - 8 and 3) museum programming for grades K-8. Currently, the Living with Water classroom curriculum is designed for and engages third-grade students; with GRP funding, LCM will adapt the curriculum for children in grades K-5 and expand implementation to K-5 classrooms. As a part of the Place-Based Education in the Gulf session, the Living with Water team would like to share our favorite successes, lessons learned, and how we hope to scale the program and create materials to support Gulf Coast educators inside and outside of the classroom.