Implementing Environmental Education: Fun Books and Innovative Schools
Our first environmental education post from two weeks ago examines the importance of prioritizing environmental literacy in schools. This post will emphasize two children's book series that can help to foster a respect and admiration for the environment, and will also highlight local and nationwide schools with this particular focus.
Environmental education can begin at home. The Magic School Bus book series addresses environmental and scientific issues and would be a fun read with your children. Some of the popular titles in the series include: And the Climate Challenge, At the Waterworks, Inside a Hurricane, Lost in the Solar System , On the Ocean Floor , and Inside a Beehive.
The popular Berenstein Bears books also have titles that address the natural world. Be sure to check out the Berenstein Bears Big Book of Science and Nature and the Berenstein Bears Nature Guide.
Reading popular series such as The Magic School Bus and the Berenstein Bears is a great way to foster respect for the natural world in young readers. This introduces them to the concept of stewardship for the earth and sustainability at an early age, an important step if we want to thrive on earth in future generations.
In light of recent state-wide and district-wide budget cuts, funds are often not allocated for subject areas outside the basics of English and Math. Unfortunately, many students are missing the experiential learning that is essential to environmental literacy.
One innovative school in the local community that is trying to remedy the lack of environmental education being delivered to students is the Environmental Charter High School (ECHS) in Lawndale. CA. ECHS strives to provide South Los Angeles students with a solid foundation rooted in the concept of stewardship. Founded in 2000, its mission is to:
...inspire students to discover their own sense of purpose, to equip all students with the knowledge and skills to graduate from college, and to empower them to become quality stewards of their community and world.
On top of our challenging classroom programs, students are required to apply concepts and skills gained in class to problem-solve local civic and environmental issues, and take action to make a measurable impact. Students also participate in outdoor educational challenges to develop self-confidence and leadership skills.
It is striking that ECHS is able to provide "outdoor educational challenges" and is able to include civic and environmental issues as top priorities, along with English and Math, in these shoe-string budget times. ECHS is an ideal example of how a school can prioritize environmental awareness and respect in its curriculum.
Google generates myriad articles about new charter schools with an emphasis on the environment. The takeaway: that environmental charter schools are a growing trend, mostly within the last two years, and there is a demand for them!
Schools must not only understand the importance of implementing environmental education, but a solid infrastructure for evaluating this new curriculum is essential as well. The Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education recently received an environmental education grant of $54,642.This grant will be used by educators in Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, and Missouri to monitor and evaluate the efficacy of environmental education on both local and state levels with the hope that this will establish the necessary infrastructure to continue to deliver environmental education in the future. Two million students will be impacted. Click here to read more about the grant.
If we are to continue to live sustainably on earth, environmental education should be treated with great importance.
Keep an eye out for our next environmental education post - there is more to come!
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