Curriculum
Our mission was to support young students in building a connection with the natural world that inspires environmental stewardship.
We accomplished this by:
1) Increasing students' awareness of local environmental issues
2) Providing knowledge about local ecosystems and the environment
3) Fostering attitudes of the natural world that are compassionate and respectful
4) Equipping students with the skills to address environmental issues
5) Encouraging action and personal involvement in environmental solutions
This “awareness to action” framework outlined in the 1977 Tbilisi Declaration on Environmental Education is the foundation of the curriculums.
Engaged Pedagogy
We focused on methods of engaged pedagogy, a social and educational theory outlined by bell hooks in her book Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. Engaged pedagogy involves acknowledging that students are more than passive consumers of information, rather, students are human beings with a myriad of lived experiences and backgrounds.
Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature
Additionally, the team focused on “core routines” to build students' comprehension of nature patterns, teachings, and ways. This approach from Coyote’s Guide to Connecting with Nature means more than just knowing something, it was about expanding one's senses and increasing awareness which allowed students to build a meaningful, long-lasting connection to nature. The two core routines centered in the curriculum were sit spots and story of the day (see methods section for further details). Core routines are lifelong practices that students can use to strengthen their relationship with the natural world.
NGSS, SEL, and NAAEE
In the curriculum, each of the lessons was linked with appropriate Next-Generation Science Standards (NGSS), highlighting at least one connection with a crosscutting concept. Another framework that was focused on when constructing the curriculum was Oregon's transformative Social and Emotional Framework Standards (SEL). SEL represents K-12 social and emotional learning expectations that are heavily considered in the adaptation of Core Routines. It follows the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) guidelines for Excellence for materials. The curriculum considers the following materials:
Fair and Accurate: providing accurate diverse information that centers on equity and inclusion
Focused on Skill Building: building lifelong skills to form a foundation for action
Provide Depth: recognizing the complexity of environmental issues to improve environmental literacy
Promotes Civic Responsibility: encourages students' environmental decision-making and action
Instructionally Effective: using best practices that are culturally and age-appropriate
Usable: well-designed and easy to use