Environmental literacy, in my mind, is closely related to being prepared for the world. These skills extend beyond understanding the basics of the life systems of our planet; environmental literacy prepares students to bridge the gap between understanding issues and taking actions to solve and improve problems. Middle schoolers have strong questioning skills--questioning me and my teaching initiatives, questioning their parents or guardians, questioning expectations and questioning their friends. I observe that these questioning skills dissipate when I ask students to question things about what they see outside or what they think about different scientific issues. Inquiry and questioning is a sign of environmental literacy (Kennedy and Stromme, …show more content…
When I think back to what’s worked well in engaging students in real-world learning, the many activities listed above are the focus. No matter what I know works best for students, it’s not an easy process to assure that I use an environmental education lens to teach. I feel that the education system doesn’t quite support this teaching lens and that other teachers, parents and administration don’t value environmental education as much as I do. There is a real struggle in meeting principal, student, colleague, district and parent expectations and meeting my own expectations. One thing I am certain of is that many students welcome the opportunity to learn about real things, venture outside while experiencing, learning and talking about issues that matter.
Here is a list of my question and concerns regarding Environmental Education:
With growing class sizes (35-36 students), some people feel that taking students outside cannot be done with proper supervision while ensuring that learning happens. Is this a common concern and how do environmental educators in the formal teaching world respond?
There seems to be a growing population that struggles to engage outside whether it’s sensory overload or challenges because of a different structure of learning. What are strategies to use to tackle this while interacting with
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In my “real” world, this isn’t the case, but I still have big dreams of what I want to do in my classroom in regards to environmental education. Here are some of my current approaches to using environmental education in my formal, middle school (7th grade) life science class:
Observation making: we go outside to see the real, natural systems before we dive into the complexities of the systems. We make observations about these systems and focus on using details, drawings, sketches and specific coloring to aid in communicating with our observations. We use guidebooks to identify different species depending on what our learning target is that day. Within the classroom, we create more meaning with our observations when we discuss some of the science behind what students see and
All teachers have the responsibility to develop skills and qualities in their pupils that are beneficial to their lives and the lives of others. Works Cited Quinn, D (1995), Ishmael, Bantam/Turner Book Publication. United Nations Educational (UNESCO 1995-2009), Scientific and Cultural Education, Education for Sustainable Development. Available at: http://www.unesco.org/en/esd/ (Date accessed 21/12/09).
Learning experiences outside the classroom such as field trips, movies, etc. are also very important, not only to support the classroom learning and to provide a lively and life-referring learning experience but also to give the students a chance to communicate in an out-of-classroom-situation that is more connected to their lives than the theoretical world of the classroom.
I believe that geography is a significant subject in the primary national curriculum because it supports children to develop an understanding of the places in the world and the diverse range of people who live in it. For me, this is an important aspect to learning because it enables children to be globally aware. According to the DFES (Great Britain. Department for Education and Skills, 2005a) education plays a vital role in helping children to recognise their contribution and responsibilities as citizens of the global community and equips them with skills to make informed decisions and take responsible actions. In a recent geography seminar, I collaboratively planned a lesson for KS2, involving children taking a visit to Seaton, a local beach in Cornwall to compare and contrast the area through photographs after recent storm damage. The Royal Geographical Society (2014) suggests through the use of enquiry-based fieldwork, children can gain first hand experiences of physical processes. Having planned this activity I now realise that the use of first hand experiences will support children to develop attitudes and opinions. This is important because in my future geography teaching I can challenge children by using t...
Giving this opportunity, I can say when it comes to being a scientist my small teacher focuses more on the bigger picture than the actual findings of assignments. For example, during the Owl Pellet observation he focused more on the overall owl pellet like how it looked, smelled, etc. but instead of wanting to analyze what was inside of it. Realizing how much his focus normally is on the bigger pictures shows how much teachers should stress how important other things such as predictions, hypothesis, etc. are when it comes to analyzing science experiments.
At my school, I am an active member of a program called S.E.E.D., which stands for Students Ending Environmental Destruction. As a group, spread awareness about recycling, water conservation and remediation, climate change, and other environmental problems the world faces today. We make sure that every classroom has a recycling bin and informative posters above them. We have hosted movie nights where we provide healthy, GMO-free refreshments and show an educational film that relates to a current issues to spread awareness. We have also convinced our school to install stations that are specifically meant to refill water bottles as it encourages students to stop buying plastic bottles and wasting plastic. Taking care of the environment and educating our youth, the congressmen, women, and voters of tomorrow who will be the deciding factors of the earth’s health, and consequently the people’s health, is crucial to me.
Every student has a diverse learning style. I believe that students should learn in a safe, caring, and understanding environment. As professional educators, we should provide this safe and open-minded environment.The ways to ensure this environment is to make sure students are actively involved in their education, to make sure teachers are providing the best materials for students to learn, and to make sure parents and the community are involved in students education.
The Pre-K and Kindergarten class studied habitats of various animals and insects. They were given examples and tough how the animals made their homes. The students built a bird house as their project and as something to take home to remind them of what they learned. Finally they went on a field trip to Legoland where they explored and built “habitats” for their families and the Lego people. The first and second grade class learned about marine life and the ocean. They built shoe box dioramas of coral reefs and created art projects depicting sea life as well as learning new facts about the ocean. The students got to go to the Aquarium for their field trip. Finally the third and fourth graders studied the rain forests and their ecosystems. The students built rainforest models and terrariums along with small group discussions on different ideas human intervention and conservation. They finished their week at the zoo where they studied different rainforest inhabitants in
These authentic learning activities are more engaging for the students and allow for a wide range of learning styles. It is imperative that all teachers attempt to integrate these experiences into their classroom as often as possible. These activities usually take more time and energy to plan and implement, but the benefit to the students make the extra work worthwhile.
The location of the observation was at the Community Center (Early Childhood education program) at 11:00am to 12:30pm on April 15, 2014. The meaningful experiences in early childhood education can positively shape children's development. With a teacher is guidance authentic child-art activity can educate enrich young students' learning abilities, encourage positive attitudes toward other children, and more importantly, learn to interact with people around them in the contemporary world. However, art for young students often takes many diversified approaches and emphasizing questionable practices. Observation is a part of meaningful and authentic early childhood art education. Observation enriches children’s experiences in their environment, gives them motivation to study, interact with other children and follow the practices of their adult models. Moreover, they develop strategies and skills to represent objects in their environment.
My family and I rarely went on outings; my parents were always busy or at work. Likewise, family trips or vacations were something my parents could not afford. The first time I ever fully experienced the beauty of nature was when I went on a week long trip with my fifth grade class to an outdoor school. This was the first time I went on a real hike and the first time I was really in the middle of nature. Walking through the forest, listening to the birds chirp and the graceful movement of the leaves in the wind changed my perspective. That week, I realized how much beauty there was to discover on Earth. My relationship with the environment started during that trip in fifth grade as I realized that the world is such an immense place full of things to admire and unearth. It was something wholly new to me. I fell in love with the
Withgott, J., & Laposata, M. (2014). Environment: the science behind the stories (5th Ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.
Children in grades 3 through 5 are moving from "learning to read" to "reading to learn" and from "learning to write" to "writing to communicate". Students learn to work independently. They learn to read words and make mental pictures. Third through fifth graders also learn to write paragraphs, short essays and stories that make a point. The curriculum becomes more integrated. "Reading to learn" helps third through fifth graders better understand the scientific method and how to test hypotheses about the physical world. Additionally, "reading to learn" aids students in graphing and calculating scientific observations and then writing up their conclusions. Third grade science class will open new worlds of wonder and invite curious mind to explore (Williams, 2012).
Personal Growth’ relates to being open to new experiences as well as having the constant ability to progress and grow as a person. Personal growth includes activities that improve awareness and individuality. It develops abilities, builds human capital and expedites employability, improve quality of life and supplement to the realization of dreams and aspirations. The individual is constantly working to grow as complete personality. For a fully functioning individual, the internal locus of control is very important. The people who are conscious about personal growth have a feeling of continued development; see themselves as growing and progressing in life. They enjoy new experiences and generally have a sense of realizing their potential.
Outdoor learning activities are beneficial for students’ health, including psychological, physiological. Outdoor learning activities offer students opportunities to move their
My time observing was not only educational for me on how to become the teacher I desire to be, but as well as how to better myself as a student and improve my own learning. I observed some wonderful learning tools that I have since implemented into my own education to develop my own learning.