Monday, May 2, 2011

Journal 9: Teaching Green

Teaching Green by John K. Waters
NETS-S 1, 2, 3, 5
Waters, J.K. . (2011, April). Teaching green. The Journal , 30(4), Retrieved from http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/1105/journal_201104/#/12

This was a wonderful article written by John K. Waters that highlighted the many resources to bring the green movement into the classroom. The article begins by reflecting on the initial push by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson and President Nixon to establish the National Environmental Education Act and Earth Day nearly 41 years ago. Since that time we have celebrated Earth Day every April and while there is an awareness of our impact on the Earth there are still many aspects about our lives that need to change.
Waters lists the many many resources that are available to teachers and students regarding a green society.  There were a few key sites that stood out for me including Classroom Earth, A Walk in the Woods, EEK, Power Up, and the Ecological Footprint Quiz.

Classroom Earth is intended for the use of High School students and teachers. It was founded by the National Educational Foundation in partnership with the Weather Channel.  Classroom Earth has a main goal that is to “enhance and strengthen environmental education in high school classrooms nationwide.” It is a site that is clean and simple to navigate. It has topic sections such as “In the News” and “Where in the World”. There are lists of videos, lesson plans and as well as links to other resource sites. Something I found especially interesting was a list for teachers to access regarding professional development and grant information regarding funding for green education programs.

My favorite site in the article was a Walk in the Woods, which is a resource site geared towards urban students 3-5. Here the students can take virtual trips through the woods and learn about the many different plants, trees and animals that inhabit their woods. There is a narration feature both in English and in Spanish.
EEK stands for Environmental education for kids and this site targets students in grades 4-8. This was developed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources as an “electronic magazine for kids”. There are sections for teachers listing guides and activities to bring into the classroom. There is also a wonderful section for students called “Get a Job” that lists prospective jobs for students in the future that tare in the green fields.

The Ecological Footprint Quiz was created to “estimate the amount of land and ocean required to sustain one person’s consumption pattern”. This is a great tool for students to realize the impact they are making on the Earth.

And finally, Waters lists the online game site called Power Up. Power Up, established in 2008, is the oldest environmental science themed educational games. The premise of the game is for the players to join a group of volunteers to save the planet. The Planet is suffering due to the many threats to our eco system, extreme weather patterns, and the many gases emitted that are ruining the Earth’s atmosphere.

Q1-As an educator, how can you creatively incorporate sites like these into your classroom?

What I loved about this article is that there are sites listed that are not solely focused on the science minded student. You can use the Footprint quiz in the classroom to ultimately have students reflect on their impact on the Earth and then it can be turned into further lesson plans regarding the physical effect on the Earth as well as the individual moral effects of what we are doing to our planet. The online game site Power Up is a great source for many kids that are live and breathe video games. The goal of this site is to “volunteer” which is the key word to save the planet. Kids that want to make a difference will feel compelled to do well in this game while also targeting the kids that excel in math and science.

Q2-When funding is tight for student field trips, what site could you use to teach students about the environment and why?

A Walk in the Woods is an excellent tool for a virtual field trip. There are pages for students to create a scrapbook. There is narration in both English and Spanish.  The best part about the site in my opinion is the section called Nature Notes that lists the plants, trees and animals found it the woods and information about them.  Also, as a teacher in Southern California, it will be a wonderful source to show students areas of the country that are different than here. 

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