The Tikkun Project
Lesson
8
Learning about Environmental Stewardship from Experts
Concept
Successful environmental projects are built when we are inspired by the proven strategies of the experts who came before us.
Focus Question
What can we learn from global champions and local experts to make our own school action plan successful?
Knowledge & Understanding Goals
Science & Technology, Air and Water, 1.1: Assess the impact of human activities and identify sustainable, evidence-based actions.
Social Studies, People and Environments: Global Communities, Strand B, B2.6: Evaluate different responses to a local environmental challenge and select the most appropriate strategy.
Language, Writing, 1.2: Generate ideas for a group action plan drawing on mentor texts and real-world models.
Thinking & Learning Skills
Thinking Skills (Strategy Matching): Connecting a local problem to an appropriate strategy modelled by a real exemplar.
Learner Profile Connection (Thinkers): Applying criteria to select a course of action.
Context
Armed with their Shomer Adamah definition (Lesson 6) and audit data (Lesson 7), students sit at the design table, studying different ways to create change before launching their final plan.
Lesson Outline
INTRODUCING FOUR ACTION TOOLS
Introduce four Action Tools linked to Lesson 6's exemplars: Jane Goodall — Research; Wangari Maathai — Small Steps; Ryan Hreljac — Fundraising (collecting resources to buy real tools, like a rain barrel — Ryan started raising money for wells as a six-year-old, and his foundation, Ryan's Well, has since helped bring clean water to communities around the world); Autumn Peltier — Leadership (a persuasive letter to change a rule).
LEARNING FROM REAL LOCAL PROJECTS
Share the Toronto Zoo salmon hatchery partnership and a wetland restoration project as real local models.
CHOOSING OUR OWN TOOL
Teams select a local school water issue and one or two Action Tools, testing against: Is it measurable? Long-lasting? Feasible? Teams complete: "Our group wants to fix ___. Inspired by [exemplar]'s tool of [strategy], we will create a realistic, long-lasting plan."
RECORDING OUR PLAN
Students sketch their chosen tool in use and complete a synthesis statement in their Thought-books.
Notes for Teaching and Evaluation
Naming each Action Tool after its exemplar keeps the tools connected to concrete biographies from Lesson 6, rather than abstract labels.
Reusing the same three-criteria filter (measurable, long-lasting, feasible) from Lesson 3 keeps one consistent standard running through the whole unit.