Teaching Goes Green Future Teachers Prepare Lessons in Nature

By Gretchen Losi, Daily Press, Victorville, Calif.

Mar. 24–VICTORVILLE — Using one of the state’s last natural wetlands, students at Victor Valley College are creating a new environmental education curriculum — just in time. The California Department of Education passed an environmental education initiative that will require integrating environmental studies in all standards-based classes including math, science and language arts. Because this concept is so new, curriculum is all but nonexistent. “Because it’s such a new idea, there’s very little of this curriculum available,” said Michael Smith, department chairman for educational technologies at the college. “Our goal is to provide a resource for teachers … a complete curriculum to use in their own classrooms.” The kindergarten through 12thgrade curriculum is being created by some 15 students, all planning to pursue a career in teaching through a partnership with Mojave Environmental Education Consortium. Students began field testing the curriculum at Piute Ponds at Edwards Air Force Base a year ago. Filled with amazing environmental anomalies including more than 250 species of birds, the process has been challenging as well as rewarding. “I had no idea we had wetlands here in the desert. When we went out there it was amazing. It was beautiful,” student Carol Thompson said. But the best part is they will be teaching future generations about the beauty of the Mojave Desert and this most precious resource. “We have to let students know our environment is fragile,” she said. “We have the opportunity to teach them about our environment, that it’s fading away to make room for mini malls.” The future teachers are finding there are also lessons being learned — while their lessons are being created. “The fact we’re creating lesson plans gives us a sense of how difficult it will be as teachers to complete them for a semester when we’re teachers,” student Michael Chatman said. Chatman is the only student volunteer, having already graduated from the program. The visually impaired student contributes an entirely different perspective to the lessons — sound identification. “I hear the birds and bugs buzzing. We are incorporating that into the curriculum,” he said “For example, the younger students will be able to match the bird to the sound.” The lesson plans — more than 100 of them — are expected to be complete by spring. All materials needed including podcasts and movies will be free to teachers either through a Web site or a free disk they can request. Gretchen Losi may be reached at 951-6233 or gretchen_losi@link.freedom. com.

—–

Copyright (c) 2007, Daily Press, Victorville, Calif.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.