ERIC Number: ED433994
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1998
Pages: 131
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: ISBN-0-913098-51-5
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Stories in the Land: A Place-Based Environmental Education Anthology. Nature Literacy Series Number 2.
This anthology collects stories from various classrooms and collaborations supported by the Orion Society. Orion's Stories in the Land fellowships are 1-year teacher stipends that promote effective place-based education: interdisciplinary studies of the local natural and cultural history using extensive field experiences and diverse "human resources." The Watershed Partnerships program was a loose consortium of collaborations between colleges and their local schools for the purpose of discovering, sharing, and celebrating the local environment. Each narrative from these programs is accompanied by a class activity. An introduction, "Teaching at the Edge" (John Elder), reflects on the educational principles that bind these stories together and suggests four fundamental themes: attentiveness to students' home landscapes, convergence of natural sciences and the arts, time spent outdoors, and sense of community fostered through human connections. The narratives and their activities are: (1) "Science and Stories in a North Philadelphia Neighborhood" (activity: looking for changes) (Mark Basnage); (2) "A Place To Begin: Encouraging Community and Sense of Self in the Interdisciplinary Classroom" (activity: book making) (Kurt Caswell); (3) "Exploring Nature: Science and English in Conversation" (activity: creating an environmental magazine) (Jennifer Danish); (4) "Monterey Bay: A Sanctuary of Promise" (activity: make a place map in your schoolyard) (Bonnie Dankert); (5) "Treasuring the Tetons" (activity: a day on the river) (Jo Anne W. Kay); (6) "Opening the Door for Young Naturalists" (activity: young naturalist journals) (Daniel Kriesberg); (7) "Wetland Wisdom" (activity: creature feature bags) (JoAnn Kruzshak, Debbie Levy); (8) "Tracing Our Culture Back to Its Roots" (activity: experiencing poetry) (Lorain Varela); (9) "Getting To Know the Lake Champlain Bioregion" (activity: environmental education journal) (Thomas R. Hudspeth); (10) "Finding Our Place on the Trail" (activity: spring journal and trail guide) (Alice Leeds); and (11) "Acquiring Felt Knowledge" (activity: finding home, a mapping activity) (Nicole J. Greene). Appendices describe a college seminar on environmental education with internships in local schools, and list readings and resources. (SV)
Descriptors: Class Activities, College School Cooperation, Elementary Secondary Education, Environmental Education, Field Trips, Higher Education, Interdisciplinary Approach, Maps, Outdoor Education, Personal Narratives, Place Based Education, School Community Relationship, Student Journals, Teaching Experience
The Orion Society, 195 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230. ($8 plus $2 shipping). Tel: 413-528-4422; e-mail: orion@orionsociety.org; Web site: .
Publication Type: Books; Collected Works - General; Guides - Classroom - Teacher
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Community; Practitioners; Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Morristown, NJ.
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A