Our Free Educational Library

The Pacific Beach Coalition is rooted in education. Each child and adult that we connect to the environment around them comes with the opportunity to inspire action and engagement in their coastal community.

Every year, PBC volunteers elect an animal or a plant to serve as its annual Earth Honoree. We use the Earth Honoree as an educational theme to develop free classroom materials for educators, create engaging school assembly programs for students, and motivate the public at events to change some of their habits to protect each Honoree.

Fun fact: Earth Honoree slogans are voted on by the community during FogFest weekend.

Earth Honoree of the Year

Here is a list of all our Honorees since 2011:

2025 Brown Pelican – “Trash in the Bin, Not the Pelican”
2024 Whales – “Shake Your Tail – Save a Whale”
2023 Nudibranch – “Ocean hugs for Sea Slugs“
2022 Mission Blue – “Mission Blue Needs You“
2020-21 Albatross – “Be a Boss – Help the Albatross“
2019 Kelp – “We all need a little Kelp“
2018 Sea Stars – “Sea Stars, Sea Change“
2017 Dolphins & Porpoises – “Make a Splash by Ending Trash!“
2016 Sea Otters – “Healthy Waters, Healthy Otters“
2015 Native and Coastal Bee – “Bee the Change, Bee an Earth Hero!“
2014 Snowy Plovers – “Little Things Matter“
2013 Sharks – “Take a bite out of litter!“
2012 Sea Turtles – “Be Turtley Cool“
2011 California Gray Whale – “Make a Whale of a Difference“

We post or link to educational resources that align or apply primarily to our field and education programs. The resources often focus on wildlife, pollution prevention, and habitat restoration as well as local, regional, and statewide environmental issues affecting our coastal ecosystem in San Mateo County, the Bay Area, California, and West Coast.

However, like the migration of whales or seabirds we often see along our shores, or the flow of runoff to our ocean from our creeks or streets, we understand global issues such as the Pacific Gyre “Garbage Patch” or marine debris traveling on ocean currents knows no boundaries. Pollution in our environment — regardless of where we live — impacts us all on planet Earth.

School Assemblies

From pre-schoolers to high schoolers, our youth education program brings coastal stewardship right into the classroom. Young Earth Heroes from Pacifica to Half Moon Bay take the pledge to protect, value, and appreciate their environment.

Our engaging school assemblies are presented by PBC naturalists and align with science standards. Then, the coastline becomes their classroom when students are joined by their families to “take action” at a monthly cleanup or habitat restoration. All ages connect to not only experiential learning in the field, but also to an entire community of Earth Heroes. Over the years, our youth education program has also included after-school programs.

To bring an assembly to your school or classroom, fill out the request form online.

Naturalist Program

In mid-2019, we started the Naturalist program, which brings naturalists to our monthly beach cleanups. These well-trained professionals have been educating thousands of volunteers about the trash found on our beaches, the local environment, and the marine ecosystem.

They also supply volunteers with important facts about our annual Earth Honoree and offer education at corporate Give Back experiences. Our Naturalists can be found leading guided nature walks, kayak tours, and even earthquake discussions.

For Teachers or Parents Doing Home Schooling

1. Free Ready-to-Print Activities from the Teacher Toolkits

The information available in our resource library highlights and supports our annual educational theme to inspire and teach environmental stewardship. Here is a list of the teacher toolkits we put together for teachers and parents doing homeschooling:

• Pelicans – Teacher Toolkit and Activities
• Whales – Teacher Toolkit and Activities
• Nudibranch – Teacher Toolkit and Activities
• Mission Blue Butterfly – Teacher Toolkit and Activities
• Albatross – Teacher Toolkit, Fun Facts
• Kelp – Teacher Toolkit, Fun Facts
• Sea Stars – Teacher Toolkit, Fun Facts
• Dolphins & Porpoises – Teacher Toolkit
• Sea Otters – Teacher Toolkit, Fun Facts
• Native and Coastal Bees – Teacher Toolkit

2. Activity Sheet for Extra Credits

We were very excited to put together an activity sheet that teachers can print and give to their students to earn extra credits. It includes a table to fill, a graph bar to create, and a short paragraph to write.
This piece was first created by two teachers from a school in San Carlos. We made it more generic to give every teachers a chance to use it.

For Students or Home School Children

1. Community Service Hours

If you are a student and need a form to fill out your Community Service Hours, feel free to use the one we created for you. You can fill out all the information your school needs. Remember to bring it to each beach cleanup or habitat restoration events you attend in order for our site captains to confirm and sign your hours. You must check in with a site captain before and after each event to verify your hours.

2. Track Your Plastic Footprint

This is an easy way to know how much plastic you consume at home. We might not notice it, but everything that is put in a garbage bag ends up in the local landfill. Unfortunately, a large amount will actually end up in the ocean. To make a difference, we invite you do to this exercise at home with your parents.

Note: To save this worksheet, click the image to open it in a new tab. Right click the image and select “Save Image As”.

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Please contact us if you’d like to us to consider an educational resource or relevant information that meets our guidelines.

Consider sponsoring our educational programs by making a tax-deductible contribution or in-kind donation at any time of the year.