To answer the question, "What is an honorable relationship with nature?", we must first understand the language. Students must therefore engage in activities that support the acquisition and accommodation of key terminology and concepts.
Building Vocabulary: Defining Environmental Terminology
The entire unit will begin and end with this question. The students will be asked to define the terms, "honorable", " relationship" and "nature", using the CD-ROM version of the Oxford Dictionary. This piece of software will not give them the simplistic definition they expect, but a barrage of definitions based on multiple perspectives. This exercise will create a natural need for dialog and class discussions to clarify the terms and their use. Students will be expected to formulate definition and apply them throughout their study of Edgewood Park .
Ethics and the Environment
Lester Milbrath wrote Learning to Think Environmentally in plain language as a dialog between two neighbors. The nature of the book encourages questions and interactions between individuals. Each chapter is no more than eight pages with large print. His text will act as a model for the students as they engage in similar dialogs after weekly reading sessions. We will build vocabulary based on individual chapters.
Each student will have their own copy of Milbrath's book to read. In addition photocopied chapters will be given to each student. They will be expected to directly write notes on the text and highlight vocabulary . This exercise will be therefore encourage questioning and interactions between individuals. As the weeks progress students will gain confidence in their ability to discuss ethical issues in the environment. Each student will have a response journal to be complete at the end of our weekly dialogs. The journal will be part of their working portfolio.
The use of Milbrath's book directly addresses my unit objective: to assist students achieve a greater understanding and appreciation for the intrinsic connection between humans and the environment. He explores the interdependency and delicate balance of biological, geological, and chemical systems. He believes a sustainable path towards our future is rooted in environmental thinking. The ethics involved in such thinking will be debated weekly during our unit Edgewood Speaks.
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