Indigenous First peoples are recognized globally for their extensive knowledge of local flora and fauna, sustainable management practices, and the ethical and cultural norms that support conservation. A need to prevent the loss of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) has led to its incorporation into formal and informal science education. Schools, as a repository of significant knowledge for transmission to young people, should then be obligated to promote TEK. The Trinidad and Tobago primary Social Studies curricula is the subject through which First Peoples’ knowledge is introduced, however, TEK is given minimum attention, and ecosystems are introduced in Science without regard to TEK. An exploratory module that integrates ecological concepts in primary science with the TEK of the First Peoples of Trinidad and Tobago was developed and piloted at a local elementary school among a group of forty standard 3 students of diverse abilities and literacies. The module presented concepts of First Peoples as scientists, environmentalists, and technologists through experiential pedagogies such as story-telling, digital games, role play, local plant identification, inquiry, and a field trip to the First People’s community of Trinidad. This paper describes the impact of the module on students’ learning outcomes and attitudes to science based on qualitative analysis of field notes, interviews of teachers and students, and students’ worksheets. The study is ongoing. The themes derived from the analysis will provide insight into the potential of an experiential module for implementation across the spectrum of learners within the local education system.

Keywords: Traditional Ecological Knowledge, environmental science, science curricula, experiential learning.