This past July was the hottest month in recorded history. An estimated 9,060 square km of the Amazon rain forest were lost to wild fires this summer. That’s an area about a 1/3 the size of Vancouver Island. At the same time, more than 10 billion tons of ice melted into the Atlantic from Greenland. Dorian, the 5th category 5 Hurricane in the past 4 years has hit the Bahamas and is presently bearing down on the east coast of Florida. The effects of global climate change have never been more obvious. With the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicting that we have less than 12 years to act to prevent potentially irreversible and catastrophic warming, teachers may understandably feel an urgency to address the effects of climate change with even young students. However, teaching children about fossil fuels, carbon footprints, melting ice caps and deforestation will only produce confusion, anxiety or despair. There is a reason climate change, as well as the fossil record that informs us of it, doesn’t appear in the BC curriculum until Grade 7 Science. It is only when students have matured into what developmental child psychologist Jean Piaget labelled the “Formal Operational Stage” of intellectual development (around the ages of 11 or 12) that they are capable of genuinely wrestling with abstract ideas and concepts such as geological time, climate and morality. However, it is essential to cultivate an environmentally-friendly perspective in younger children. To do so, it is best to focus on their immediate surroundings, that which they can hear, see, feel, touch and even taste and combine this with a series of values and habits that lead to more sustainable future. Build Connections to the Natural WorldThe best way to learn about the environment is to spend time outside: rain and shine. The benefits of walking in nature are well documented. It lowers blood pressure, strengthens bones and muscles, improves focus, boosts creativity, reduces stress and elevates your mood. It also gives students a much greater appreciation for the natural world and its inhabitants. Whether you take your students to the sea shore for a field-trip or walk in the local forest, make sure your students get into wild spaces early and often throughout the year. In class, bring in lots of life. Plants will not only improve the air quality of your classroom and make the space less institutional, caring for them cultivates a feeling of responsibility in children for their environment. On the topic of cultivation, consider planting a vegetable garden in the spring or at the very least, take advantage of the spuds in tubs program. It’s important to see life growing and build a feeling of interconnectedness. Many schools bring in butterfly pupa for their kindergarten classes, but why stop there? The Eggucation program allows children to see chicks hatch and grow. The addition of an aquarium can likewise bring students a greater appreciation for life unlike our own. The salmonids in the classroom program run through the Department of Fisheries is free and has accompanying teaching resources that drives home the importance of salmon to BC’s ecology. In your teaching, make time to document the passing of the seasons and bring students’ attention to the changes occurring in the natural world: the autumn leaves, salmon spawning, the phases of the moon, the shortening of days, bird migrations, frost, the rising streams in spring, fresh shoots and buds. As David Suzuki writes: “Unless we are willing to encourage our children to reconnect with and appreciate the natural world, we can't expect them to help protect and care for it.” Empower Your Students: Set Achievable GoalsWe must show children how meaningful action leads to appreciable results. Students may not have much of a say in their family’s behaviours, but at school they need to engage in efforts to reduce waste and conserve energy. Introduce litter free lunches and take compositing and recycling seriously. Every time you find something in the garbage instead of the compost or recycling, address it. Organize book and toy swaps. Celebrate Earth Day. Plant trees. Promote green initiatives like walk and bike to school week with enthusiasm and celebrate your successes.
Finally, as a teacher model more sustainable behaviours yourself and make explicit the reasons behind your choices. Take transit, bike or carpool to work if you can. Make your next car electric or hybrid. Try to eat less meat and more seasonal fruits and vegetables. Bring your snacks in reusable containers. Turn off electronics when you aren’t using them and the lights when you exit your classroom. Most importantly, talk to your students about what you are doing and why. This education might seem insufficient to meet the challenges of the future, but as educators our goal can’t be to burden children with the world’s problems. We must prepare them to continue the work we are undertaking today. To do that they need to see both that Nature has an intrinsic value and, perhaps more importantly, that our health depends entirely upon the health of our planet. The proverb “Waste not, want not” is almost 250 years old, but its message about the importance of conservation has never been more relevant. We got into teaching to make a difference, this is our opportunity.
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