Schools : It's Earth Day 2015 !

http://www.earthday.org/

Today, April 22 we celebrate Earth Day 2015. With my students we are in since 2006.

For 45 years, Earth Day has been bringing communities and organizations together to advocate for a healthier environment and a sustainable life. 

http://i.imgur.com/

Some information:

The first Earth Day on April 22, 1970 activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life to share their concerns about each citizen’s critical role in the environment. 

Their actions led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. 

Now over one billion people in 192 countries participate in Earth Day activities, making it the largest civic observance in the world. 

Earth Day’s Global 2015 theme: "It’s Our Turn to Lead." 

This year's Earth Day is the 45th, since its inception in 1970, which was widely viewed as marking the beginning of the contemporary environmental movement. 

It is organised by the Earth Day Network, which aims to "inform and energize populations so they will act to secure a healthy future for themselves and their children".

Google Doodle Earth Day 2015

https://www.google.com/doodles/

Google is celebrating Earth Day 2015 by creating a wonderful animated Doodle featuring a rotating Earth and creatures including an elephant and a komodo dragon.

Earth Day is a time to search for information on how to celebrate and protect our planet. And it’s a great time to find out something about ourself too.

Education: 

I've done in the past and continue to share some thoughts on teaching about Earth Day and environmental civics education in general and proposed different resources. 

Activities:

This year, start your lesson, by asking your students to take their mobile or tablet and go to Google homepage. Wow ! They will be surprised with this awesome animated doodle.

Tell your students to click on the Earth Day logo, or searching for “Earth Day quiz” and they will find one of the Internet’s favorite pastimes: a goofy quiz.

Let them take the time to answer a few questions and they too can determine, share, and learn more about which animal most closely represents each personality.

The quiz works on just about any up-to-date browsers on any mobile or desktop browsers, including the Android and iOS Google Apps. 

Google assure us it’s all 100% accurate and scientific ;-)

"We learned a lot about nature’s precious pals and interesting inhabitants in the process of making and taking this quiz and we hope you do, too!"

The Earth Day Doodle Crew

No doubt ! Google Earth Day doodle crew has done its bit to celebrate Earth Day 2015, the largest civic event in the world, with one of its trademark doodles.

It is not the first time Google has celebrated Earth Day with a doodle. You will find some they have done over the years on my blog or on the blogs for my students: Portuguese and French curricula.

But they have their own environmental blogs since 2007: Geração Verde (Green Generation) and Geração Polar (Polar explorers).

After the fun, students are ready to prepare some good actvities for a day, may be for a week. I know you have something prepared.

credits : UNESCO

Some thoughts:

Schools have an important role promoting environmental education as a civic value. So, teachers can teach and share environmental values in different moments of their lessons in cross-curricular.

Yes! Because Earth Day is not about a day! Earth Day is about every day! So, educators must include environmental values in different moments of their lessons, no matter the curriculum, and provide some thoughts and digital resources, educating young people for a sustainable future and inspiring them being a good example.

http://www.uniqueteachingresources.com/

Students will evolve in creative green projects  that they will share with families and friends. They will become good young environmentalists. They are already. They are the new generation who really cares about Earth.

Organizing an Earth Day event or activity is one of the best ways to engage your school community to protect the planet. 

Once you figure out your plan, let Earth Day know and Earth Day network will help you spread the word. 

http://lh3.ggpht.com/

The bigger the story we can tell on Earth Day 2015, the larger impact we will have.

Level: All levels.

Curriculum: Cross-curricular activities and projects.

Every teacher will adapt the actvities to the level they are teaching.

The Untouched - A Time-lapse Film from Shreenivasan Manievannan on Vimeo.

Resources:

Earth Day offers you a Toolkit providing resources to help you plan your own Earth Day event. 

If you need additional help or resources, don’t hesitate to send an email, info@earthday.net!

Special links to inspire your students:

Leadership Guide
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/271871/Leadership%20Toolkit%202015.pdf

Climate Education Week : A week of activities
http://www.earthday.org/climateeducationweek/

A Million Acts of Green
http://www.earthday.org/takeaction/

"The Untouched - A Time-lapse Film" 
http://www.earthday.org/blog/2015/04/21/untouched

Moving photos show Native American Children Defending the Earth 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/15/tailinh-agoyo-warrior-project_n_7066438.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000044

British photographer  turns parks, village and beaches into their own little worlds.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3038191/Photographer-transforms-British-parks-beaches-planets.html


“Children are so knowledgeable [about environmental issues],”(...) “They know what’s going on and they’re more aware and more affected than adults are.”

Tailinh Agoyo, photographer


So, Happy Earth Day to you today and everyday!

G-Souto

22.04.2015

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