MWEE Guide

An Educator’s Guide to the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE), commonly referred to as the MWEE Guide, is a manual designed for users with varying levels of familiarity with the MWEE framework. MWEEs are compelling hands-on opportunities for students to explore local environmental issues through sustained, teacher-supported programming. The tools, worksheets, and information in this guide help educators ensure that MWEEs are done thoroughly and thoughtfully to increase student environmental literacy. 

The cover photo of "An Educator's Guide to the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience." The background photo is of students testing water quality along an algae covered river. At the bottom of the page it has the NOAA logo and reads "NOAA Bay Watershed Education and Training Program, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, October 2022."

An Educator's Guide to the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE)

PDF, 5.3 MB

Download the complete MWEE Guide, including the planning tools and student worksheets. You can also download or print these planning tools and student worksheets in toolboxes or individually below. 

Planning Tools Toolbox (PDF, 539 KB)

The Planning Tools Toolbox has resources you can use to help plan a MWEE.

Planning tools include:

Student Worksheet Toolbox (PDF, 1.9 MB)

The Student Worksheets Toolbox has resources you can use to help guide student-directed learning. These resources are designed to be used by or with students and can be printed out and used as worksheets, or you could enlarge them and create a collaborative working space in your classroom.

Student worksheets include:

Additional MWEE Resources

To support and build on the contents of the MWEE Guide, NOAA maintains a MWEE resources webpage. This page will be updated with current research supporting the MWEE framework and other resources for MWEE practitioners (e.g., facilitator’s guides, online courses) as they become available.