Planning For Service Learning Example: Elementary, The Environment

Planning for Service Learning Example: Elementary, The Environment
Grade level(s): 3 Youth Voice and Choice:

Since the project is ongoing, each year students add a new
Essential Purpose or Question: component based on their ideas (for example, making journals,
How can teaching others about helping the environment enable being worm in parade).
us to be better students and citizens?
Curricular Connections:
ContentLearning About: 4 English/Language Arts:
Ecology Composting q
Design a campaign to promote use of school composting and
Waste reduction Recycling
reduce waste at school, write video script, write letter to parents
Service Need: describing project, write Worm Ways newsletter, plan and write
There is too much waste in our community that could be recycled. Give It to the Worms brochure
If the students and community are informed about options for
4 Social Studies/History:
q
composting, they can choose to participate.
Study environmentalist Rachel Carson
Service Idea: Give It to the Worms 4 Mathematics:

q
Promote composting at school and in the community. Graph waste quantities
4 Science:
q
Investigation of the Need: Study life cycles; review ecosystems, waste reduction, and
Weigh the amount of food thrown away at lunch that could be composting; maintain compost and worm bin
composted. Interview a school custodian.
4 Languages:
q
Create Spanish-language signs to place by the compost and worm bins
Preparation and Planning:
Study ecosystems, hear guest speaker from Integrative Waste 4 Art and Music:
q
Management Board (IWMB), create chart to record waste Design poster campaign
quantities and reduction, prepare video presentation on waste 4 Technology:
q
management.
Make a how-to-compost video with help from high school
students
Action:
Install compost and worm bins, monitor school food waste, q Other:
donate compost soil to school garden and nearby senior hous- Skills Being Developed:
ing (gardening by elder residents), host parent information Paragraph construction
night with site tour and composting lesson. Graphing
Vocabulary
Reflection Methods: Time management
Keep journals made from recycled paper, weekly meetings to Following directions
review project success, annual review of progress with IWMB Sequencing
partners. Public speaking, including planning a talk
Patience
Demonstration to Others: Books and Other Media Used:
Distribute monthly copies of newsletter Worm Ways to school Compost Critters
community, participate in Chinese New Year parade as a giant I Want to Be an Environmentalist
worm while handing out Give It to the Worms brochures Compost! Growing Gardens from Your Garbage
about worm bins and composting. Rachel Carson
Community Partners:
Integrative Waste Management Board
Chinese New Year planning committee
PTSA for participation at back-to-school events
Nearby senior housing
From The Complete Guide to Service Learning: Proven, Practical Ways to Engage Students in Civic Responsibility, Academic Curriculum, & Social Action (Revised & Updated Second
Edition) by Cathryn Berger Kaye, M.A., copyright 2010. Free Spirit Publishing Inc., Minneapolis, MN; 800-735-7323; www.freespirit.com. This page may be reproduced for use
within an individual school or district. For all other uses, contact www.freespirit.com/company/permissions.cfm.
Planning for Service Learning Example: Elementary, The Environment (continued)
Opportunities for Students to:

Experience and explore diversity:
Students used the composting as a way to discuss all the different foods people eat and their cultural connections. After learning more
about Chinese New Year, they added another level of understanding diversity. In creating their brochure, students considered who their
audience would be and wrote to a range of populations in their community.
Participate in progress monitoring:

Students measured the reduction in garbage waste at school. They also visited each classroom at the beginning of the year to inform
students about the compost, and revisited at the beginning of February to see how many students used the compost and how many
planned to use it.
Learn about careers:

Students learned about careers in waste management and city commissions.
Strengthen social, emotional, and character traits:

Students strengthened their perseverance and patience. Patience was especially challenging at first since the students wanted results;
they wanted everyone to use the compost bins and they wanted to see the compost magic happen! By charting progress, they became
more patient and saw how the activities and success evolved over time.
Make global connections:

The connection with Chinese New Year added to our sense of celebration occurring in many parts of the world. This was an exciting
notion for the students to understand.
Develop leadership:
Students worked diligently on organizational skills, which are definite traits of leaders. They planned the collection for the compost,
formed speaking teams, and tracked details that were essential to progress.
Duration of the Service Learning Experience (approximate timeframe):

The service began with the commitment of a yearlong effort. With the students excitement and success, it has grown to an annual experi-
ence with ongoing learning opportunities. At the beginning, we spent about a day a week on this, spread out among many subject areas.
As the process grew more established, we spent about two to three hours a week doing upkeep and monitoring. Students had roles during
lunch and other out-of-class times that they gladly fulfilled.
Teacher Collaboration:
All teachers willingly incorporated into their lessons the books about composting recommended by our class. They welcomed our students
for lessons and announcements.
Public Awareness or Presentations Planned (including media, alerting public officials, recognition, and celebrations):
A newspaper article reported on the worm at the Chinese New Year parade. Students made annual presentations and gave tours to parents
and community members, including residents of a senior living community.
Tangible Product(s) from the Experience:

Worm Ways newsletter, Give It to the Worms brochure, how-to-compost video created with high school partners
Additional Notes:
This activity started on a small scale with one elementary school teacher in Palo Alto, California, and grew to involve many more. This plan
shows what evolved over four years.
From The Complete Guide to Service Learning: Proven, Practical Ways to Engage Students in Civic Responsibility, Academic Curriculum, & Social Action (Revised & Updated Second
Edition) by Cathryn Berger Kaye, M.A., copyright 2010. Free Spirit Publishing Inc., Minneapolis, MN; 800-735-7323; www.freespirit.com. This page may be reproduced for use
within an individual school or district. For all other uses, contact www.freespirit.com/company/permissions.cfm.

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Planning for Service Learning Example: Elementary, The Environment

Grade level(s): 3 Youth Voice and Choice:

Service Idea: Give It to the Worms 4 Mathematics:

Opportunities for Students to:

Participate in progress monitoring:

Learn about careers:

Strengthen social, emotional, and character traits:

Make global connections:

Duration of the Service Learning Experience (approximate timeframe):

Tangible Product(s) from the Experience:

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