Reflection on the EfS Curriculum Design Studio

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Last summer, I had the pleasure of taking one of the most productive professional development workshops in my sixteen years of teaching. The Cloud Institute had asked participants of their Education for Sustainability Curriculum Design Studio to come prepared with a lesson plan or unit which would be worked on and viewed through the lens of the EfS standards. This made all the difference. I chose our fall science unit on Water/Salt Marsh Ecology.
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Hands Are for Helping, Not Hurting

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I believe, as a teacher, it is my responsibility to prepare my students to become active citizens in our world. They have the power to create both social and environmental change. This project and our school garden help build awareness, responsibility, and action about our school’s cleanliness and its relationship with the environment.
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From the Field— “I Matter! A Systems Approach to 3rd Grade Field Trips”

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In the summer of 2010 I attended the Cloud Institute’s EfS Curriculum Design Studio and rewrote our Monarch Butterfly Curriculum to integrate systems thinking. Although monarchs are still the stars of our curriculum, our third grade team really wanted the students to learn that they have a real and genuine influence on the systems in which they are a part: they do matter and can affect change!
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States, Stories and Sustainability, a Fourth Grade Project at The College School

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We have each been teachers for 12 years and most of our experience has been at The College School (TCS), a pre-eighth grade, independent school in St. Louis, Missouri. Sustainability has always been a value at TCS, and yet is has been somewhat intangible. We were fortunate to attend a week-long seminar at The Cloud Institute with a team from The College School.
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Sustainability as Resilient Community | EfS @ St Paul’s Episcopal School

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The Mission of St. Paul’s Episcopal School in New Orleans is to instill in children the strength of intellect and strength of character in a Christian environment that is positive, respective and familial. They encourage their students to strive to do their best, to be humane, and to appreciate the beauty of life. Merry Sorrell, the Head of School, came to the school at a critical point when, due to the floodwaters of hurricane Katrina, the school was questioning its own ability to keep its doors open and to keep its student registration up.
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A Million Ways of Learning, A Million Ways of Taking Action

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Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES represents 18 local school districts. Their Education for Sustainability initiative represents a far reaching attempt to teach students to live within the means of nature, to be connected with their communities and to catalyze far reaching change starting with their schools. An interview with Carolyn Elwood, who has been participating in this initiative provides insight into the many ways schools can foster the principles of Education for Sustainability in their curriculum.
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