Below is an annotated list of children's literature for the elementary classroom. The books are organized by the Six Elements of Social Justice Curriculum Design (Picower, 2007). It is based on work by pre-service teachers at Montclair State University. They have read and reviewed these books and provided insights into how they can be used in K-5 settings.
Monday, April 22, 2013
101 Ways You Can Help Save the Planet Before You're 12!
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Summary: This book is a great resource for young children who are passionate about helping to save the environment, or even for children who do not know why saving the environment is important! 101 Ways You can Help Save the Planet Before You're 12 has a lot of useful information about what goes on in our environment and easy ways to do your part. With tips like "Green your school supplies", "Become an eco expert", and "Have a litter-less lunch", this book provides students with numerous ideas that can really benefit our planet. Not only does it provide these helpful tips, but it also includes information about why doing these small things can help make a big difference.
Element 6: Element 6 encourages students to take social action, and this book is a perfect way for them to get started. This book sends messages of positivity and enthusiasm to the reader, which are important for young people to get started in making a difference. Some students might feel like they can not make an impact in their community or on the world because it seems like such a big task. However, this book shows that making a big difference does not have to be difficult- it can be done by changing small, daily habits. This book is a great reflection of Element 6 because it shows kids that they can be activists in their every day lives, and even get their family and friends in on the (social) action!
Activity: This book has so many great suggestions for activities students can do to help save the planet, so it is easy for a teacher to find one to use in the classroom! One tip that the book includes that would make a good classroom activity is "Get Crafty!" (pg 72). This activity suggests using reusable materials (empty tissue boxes, old jeans, old CDs, empty jars, etc.) to craft something new. This could be a great way to encourage reusing and recycling in the classroom. A teacher could ask her students to bring in some old materials from home that are not being used and he/she should bring in her own as well. The teacher should have a large supply of art materials available for the activity. Once all students have collected their materials, the teacher can give a lesson on recycling and reusing materials, and the class can engage in an arts and crafts activity in which they turn their old items into something new and useful!