Environmental Literacy
Bringing Nature Back to the Schoolyard
by Jane Tesner Kleiner, RLA Imagine walking out the back door of your school, surrounded by the songs of spring time birds, the soft scents of flowers in bloom, the wind billowing through nearby trees, and (if you are lucky) the croaking of Pacific tree...
Food Waste and Climate Change
PEI Offers Food Waste and Climate Change Storyline Workshop for Teachers Despite being one of the wealthiest countries in the world, the United States is also one of the most wasteful. America holds the dubious distinction of throwing away more food than every other...
Integration Can Help You Teach More Science and Environmental Education
Integration Can Help You Teach More Science and Environmental Education by Jim McDonald Central Michigan University The demands on classroom teachers to address a variety of different subjects during the day means that some things just get left out of the curriculum....
Digital Environmental Literacy: Student Generated Data and Inquiry
How do we train educators to successfully interface technologies with the outdoor experiences that they provide their students? by R. Justin Hougham, Marc Nutter, Megan Gilbertson, Quinn Bukouricz University of Wisconsin - Extension Technology in education (ed tech)...
An Educator’s Guide to Stewardship
An Educator's Guide to Stewardship by Breanna Caruso Click on the title to view PDF version of article.
Why Environmental Educators Shouldn’t Give Up Hope
Photo by Jim Martin Why Environmental Educators Shouldn’t Give Up Hope by Jacob Rodenburg I’m trying hard not to get discouraged. Being an environmental educator in today’s world feels like you are asked to stop a rushing river armed only with a teaspoon. There are so...
EE Questions and Actions
Critical Questions 1. What kinds of support are available in your school, district and community for supporting environmental educational activities? 2. In what ways can environmental education activities enhance learning? 3. What are the most effective strategies for...
What is Good Environmental Education?
What is Good Environmental Education? Our students need to be ready to invest in building positive futures for the communities to which they belong - household to global. by Peter Hayes he choice to become an educator brings with it a career-long sentence to the...
Human/Natural Systems Interactions
Human/Natural Systems Interactions: A Framework A critical thinking tool for developing ecological literacy throughout the curriculum compares cultures and their relationship to the natural world. by Barbara Jackson n this era of relentless consumption of...
4-H Urban-Rural Exchange
By being on the land and walking in the shoes of their host families, students begin to understand more deeply how and why Oregonians manage the land the way they do. By Maureen Hosty With contributions from Gary Delaney, Deb Schreiber, John Williams, Jed Smith and...
Digging Deeper
by David A. Greenwood, Lakehead University, Canada As part of the 2009 North American Association of Environmental Education Research Symposium, this article addresses the cultural and theoretical frameworks that we bring to environmental education, the web of...
Earth Day
Although this article was written in 1996, and contains references to events and people from that era, much of Weilbacher's critique remains relevant today. -Ed. Every Day is NOT Earth Day Reflections on the True Meaning of Earth Day by Mike Weilbacher 'll...
Bird Language
Creating the Need to Pay Attention Field trips and adventures in the woods are tremendously important experiences for children, especially those students that don’t often get to spend time in a natural setting. Some of the most important, lasting results of good...
Incorporating Traditional Ecological Knowledge into Geoscience Education
It Takes a Community to Raise a Scientist: A Case for Community-Inspired Research and Science Education in an Alaskan Native Community By Nievita Bueno Watts and Wendy F. Smythe The quote, "lt takes a village to raise a child," is attributed to African tradition and...
No Fooling: Exploring the Nature of Responsibility, Progress, Success, and Good Work
No Fooling: Exploring the Nature of Responsibility, Progress, Success, and Good Work How we answer a challenge raised over half a century ago regarding the way we handle the blessings of nature will go a long way towards determining our future. by Peter Hayes In the...
Bias and the Educator in the Mirror
Bias and the Educator in the Mirror Our inherent perspectives color the world we share with our students. by Victor Elderton Many of us in environmental education strive to create lessons and activities which we hope will facilitate greater understanding and stimulate...
Why Garden in School (Part 2)
Can School Gardening Help Save Civilization? (An Essay in Four Parts) by Carter D. Latendresse The Catlin Gabel School Portland, Oregon Abstract This paper is an argument for gardening in schools, focusing on two months of integrated English-history sixth grade...
EE Research: Writing Stories Builds Scientific Literacy
Writing Stories Builds Scientific Literacy From Environmental Research Bulletin Nicole Ardoin and Jason Morris, Project Leaders THE RESEARCH: Ritchie, S. M., Tomas, L., & Tones, M. (2011). Writing stories to enhance scientific literacy. International Journal of...
Teaching and Learning Ecologically
Cultivating Ecological Teachers and Learners Using Project Learning Tree by Jaclyn Stallard from The Branch, Project Learning Tree's E-newsletter Summer 2014 "Ecological teaching and learning is not just a matter of pedagogy, but also philosophy. Ecological...
Environmental Literacy: What have students learned that is not on the test?
Environmental Literacy: What have students learned that is not on the test? by Janell Simpson and Susan Meyers reprinted from the North American Association for Environmental Education he intent of this article is to provide tools to the classroom teacher to document...
Fueling the Fire: North Cascade Institute’s Path for Youth
Fueling the Fire: North Cascade Institute's Path for Youth by Mollie Behn t is no secret that today’s youth are increasingly disconnected from nature. As a result, youth are less aware of issues and threats facing the environment and how to address them. We need to...
Seeking Environmental Maturity…
...at Starker Forests Helping students climb the ladder to responsible citizenship by Dick Powell This past summer I attended the World Forestry Center's International Educator's Institute (IEI). As an environmental educator without any formal pedagogical or...
Teach the student who lives within the body
Photo credit: Sarah Sullivan, Abernethy School, Portland by Jim Martin Clearing Associate Editor he last time we met, students had planted seeds in parts of a garden plot they chose. So, where do they go now? They’ve made their decisions about where to plant each of...
Inquiry Learning: Asking Your Own Questions
When you make the finding yourself - even if you're the last person on Earth to see the light - you'll never forget it. -Carl Sagan by Jim Martin Science Educator and CLEARING guest writer oing out into the world beyond the classroom for science and other curricula...
Learning Eco-Literacy (Lessons from an Orca Grandmother) Pt. 3
by Sally Hodson, Ed.D. author of Granny's Clan, published by Dawn Publications See Part 1 and Part 2 of this series. Part 3: Tell a Story How do we prepare young people for the 21st century challenge of caring for our planet so that it can sustain future generations...
The Urban-Rural Exchange Bridges Oregon’s Greatest Divide
The Urban-Rural Exchange Bridges Oregon's Greatest Divide By Judy Scott From Oregon's Agricultural Progress Wallowa County in northeast Oregon was the destination for one of this year’s four exchanges. The young guests from the city arrived in the thick of calving...
Teachers discover authentic lessons in crayfish and caddis flies
Teachers discover authentic lessons in crayfish and caddis flies What is that bug? Teachers Kathryn Davis from Hood River High School, Molly Charnes from the Academy of International Studies in Woodburn and Thomas McGregor from The Phoenix School in Roseburg work at...
Oregon Environmental Literacy Plan: Building a Network
Oregon Environmental Literacy Plan: Building a Network by Traci Price In 2009, the Oregon Legislature passed the No Oregon Child Left Inside (NOCLI) Act that established an eleven-member task force charged with developing The Oregon Environmental Literacy Plan: Toward...
Do It Yourself First: Leading Student-Directed Inquiry
Do It Yourself First: Leading Student-Directed Inquiry by Jim Martin CLEARING guest writer f you’ve never taken your elementary, middle, or secondary students out of the classroom to learn, and can’t find a helpful mentor or workshop, it’s okay to learn to use the...
Learning Eco-Literacy (Lessons from an Orca Grandmother) Pt. 2
by Sally Hodson, Ed.D. author of Granny's Clan, published by Dawn Publications See Part 1 of this series. . Part 2: Asking Questions ow do we prepare young people for the 21st century challenge of caring for our planet so that it can sustain future generations of...
Learning Eco-Literacy (Lessons from an Orca Grandmother)
by Sally Hodson, Ed.D. author of Granny's Clan, published by Dawn Publications . Part 1: Thinking in Webs . lanet Earth is home whether you’re a plant, an animal or a human. Our Earth is the only place in the universe we know for sure that can support life. So how...
Discovering Place: A Place-based Education Video Series
urious about place-based education? Check out this free place-based education (PBE) video series, produced by University Outreach at the University of Michigan-Flint. The series was made possible through a $20,000 grant by the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network...
Living Planet, Living Imaginations (.pdf)
Click on the image to read the article.
K-12 Oregon Forestry Literacy Program supports teaching about forests
Teachers and school administrators now can access Oregon Forest Resources Institute’s The Oregon Forest Literacy Program, a K-12 Conceptual Guide to Teaching and Learning about Oregon Forests. The new program provides a framework for educating Oregon’s K-12 students...
Partnering for Ocean Literacy
Along the Oregon coast, community partners are teaming up with the school district to encourage use of the ocean as a context for learning . by Rachel Bayor, School Liaison Partnership Coordinator hy do kids need to know about the ocean? It may take a moment to...
A Classroom Without Walls
A Classroom Without Walls Deepening Children's Connection with Nature by Seth Webb Free Horizon Montessori School e each have an incredible gift: the ability to engage children with the world - indeed, the universe - that surrounds them and, of which, they are...
Exemplary EE Programs in the Pacific Northwest
Click on the image for an overview of outstanding regional EE programs. Put your program on the map! Recent additions: • Solar panels in Seattle classroom • CREST Farm-to-School Program • Expeditionary Learning in Washington
Lessons for teaching in the environment and community – 10
"Lessons for Teaching in the Environment and Community" is a regular series that explores how teachers can gain the confidence to go into the world outside of their classrooms for a substantial piece of their curricula. Part 10: Assimilation When the world outside...
Environmental Literacy in Action: Abernethy Elementary’s Farm-to-School and School Garden Program
On a quiet, residential, inner southeast Portland, Oregon street, a little elementary school is breaking new ground for the farm-to-school and school garden movement. At Abernethy Elementary, students enjoy freshly cooked breakfasts and lunches prepared on site by a...
Feature articles
Lessons for teaching in the environment and community
"Lessons for Teaching in the Environment and Community" is a regular series that explores how teachers can gain the confidence to go into the world outside of their classrooms for a substantial piece of their curricula. Part 4: Inquiry An Introduction to the World of...
Kettle Falls: Engaging in Real Work
by Val McKern Kettle Falls Elementary School believes that by engaging kids in authentic work, attitudes can change toward both work and community. As a second grader, Todd started the year with little interest in school, had a difficult time focusing on discussions...
CREST Farm to School
by Bob Carlson CREST is an environmental education center operated by the West Linn-Wilsonville School District which is located just south of Portland, Oregon. One of the key CREST programs is the CREST Farm . The farm is located on surplus district property....
How to Give Kids a Nature Experience to Remember
ne of my favorite nature quotations comes from the Japanese conservationist Tanaka Shozu who said, “The question of rivers is not a question of rivers, but of the human heart.” I wanted to touch the hearts of my middle school students with the beauty of nature as well...
Paying Attention: Being a Naturalist and Searching for Patterns
By Saul Weisberg Executive Director North Cascades Institute (reprinted from The Best of CLEARING) I love knowing the names of things. It makes them familiar, like old friends. I also love to look at patterns in nature. Veins on the back of a vine maple leaf. The...
From Screens to Streams: Using Technology as a “Bridge” to the Outdoors
Rather than viewing technology as an enemy of environmental literacy, technology-based learning can help cultivate an environmental sensibility by serving as a "bridge" to the outdoors. By Ryan Johnson When I was ten years old, I was absolutely obsessed with the...
Catlin Gabel School—a Focus on Food
By Eric Shawn The interdisciplinary study of food has emerged as a theme in sustainability education at Catlin Gabel School, an independent, co-educational school with 725 students in preschool through 12th grade in Portland, Oregon. The focus on food—a necessity for...
The Heart of Sustainability: Big Ideas from the Field of EE
Big Ideas from the field of Environmental Education and their Relationship to Sustainability Education — or — What’s love got to do with it? . . By Donald J. Burgess and Tracy Johannessen Introduction common raven suddenly begins to call from Cornwall Park. I rush to...
Top Ten List for Developing Environmental Literacy
from Callister, Jamogochian, Lemos, Weddle, & Yoder (2010) - Community-based Education: Model Programs. Northwest Center for Sustainable Resources. http://www.ncsr.org/materials/index.html This top-ten list of advice from Jon Yoder may be of assistance for...
Teaching the 3 R’s Through the 3 C’s: Connecting The Curriculum And Community
Teaching the 3 R's Through the 3 C's: Connecting the Curriculum and Community By Clifford E. Knapp The exploration of the educational potential of communities through direct experiences is not a new idea. In 1912 naturalist, John Burroughs, wrote: “. . . The way of...
Educating for Earth: Future Generations and All of Life
by Mike Seymour What we have called the "environmental crisis" is the most significant challenge humanity as a whole has faced in its recorded history. How we understand and frame this crisis—and how we summon the political courage to change—will determine the extent...
Works in Progress: Making the most of your environmental education opportunities
Works in Progress: Making the most of your environmental education opportunities Sneak up on them, and they’ll learn. On their own. By Jim Martin How do you take care of all the background capacity building students need to make the most of environmental education...
How to Start an Environmental Group in Your School or Community
If you're starting from scratch, use these steps as a guide to create an environmental group in your school or community. If you're already part of a high school class or club that addresses environmental issues, consider joining National Wildlife Federation's Earth...
Top Five Ways to Use EE to Achieve Your Education Goals
By Judy Braus You’re a new teacher with a head full of ideas. You want to be innovative and effective — on the cutting edge of reform. You want your kids to be excited about learning. And you think the environment is an important, cross-cutting theme that will engage...
The Window into Green
by Mike Weilbacher With the new wave of interest in the environment, will we finally give students the tools they need to become environmentally literate citizens? In just a few weeks, high school seniors all around the United States will walk proudly across stages,...
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