Outside and aware in the Ozarks
Educating from the outside in

We believe that students need to connect to the place they live, and to do so they need to learn about their own backyard, their local watershed.

Welcome to watersheds.org, the Web site of the Bryant Watershed Education Project. We are a nonprofit organization promoting active learning and place-based education in south central Missouri.

Please note: As of July 1, 2009, the Bryant Watershed Education Project has entered a dormant period in terms of operating student programs in the south central Ozarks. The website will be maintained. Questions and requests may be directed to
Where are we?

Our programs combine educational technology, classroom teaching, and hands-on experience. They succeed thanks to the local schools, educators, students, and citizen volunteers working with us. We are based in West Plains, Missouri. Contact us to learn more.

Programs Completed:

June 2007 Our Watersheds, Our Homes: Expanding the Atlas Program in the North Fork, Eleven Point, and Upper Spring River Tributaries watersheds. The program includes Stream Days field trips, Team Watershed volunteer opportunities, and the ArtStream multidisciplinary program.

January, 2004: Teaching Up A Creek: a program in collaboration with SMSU-West Plains.
   Final Assessment project report (PDF)
   PowerPoint presentation

2003-04: Pilot ArtStream project at West Plains Middle School.
ArtStream Project Guide for Educators

2001: Middle School Watershed Awareness Project
Our pilot project on watersheds and water quality, conducted at Ava Middle School.

Using the Site

If you are looking for a specific topic, use the Search box on the menu bar at the top of each page. 

View our site map to find a listing of the topics we have to offer.

Lesson plans and study units

Interactives, games and more

Tech Tips: quick reference on the basics of printing web pages, downloading plug-ins, etc. 

Our External Link Policy

We endeavor to include external links that are useful additions to our Atlas. This is our policy for selecting and managing links: 

We choose links which are directly relevant  to the specific  text and/or graphic content with which we place them. 

We include a short description with each general-purpose link to an educational or research resource. 

We check links during our editorial reviews of the text or graphic content they accompany.

Because of the ever-changing nature of the Internet, we cannot verify or endorse their content, accuracy, opinions, or other links they provide.