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Action Projects ~ Personal Action

SUMMARY: Students make connections between their Hidden Villa experiences and their daily lives. Then students make and monitor personal goals that reflect their Hidden Villa knowledge. DURATION: 1 to 2 weeks GRADES: 4th -5th, can be adapted to 2nd-3rd

ACTION COMPONENT
Altering how we act based on new information is one of the most powerful agents of social change. There are several steps involved in this process. First, we must develop the habit of making connections between our own actions and the environmental and social conditions of the world. Then we need to identify those things in our lives that we can change to help improve these conditions. Finally, we must demonstrate the follow-through necessary to implement these changes in our daily lives.
STANDARDS
Although there are no specific state standards that require students to demonstrate their ability to apply what they learn in school to their own lives, this should be a goal of any education system. And yet, with the increasing emphasis on high-stakes testing, the real-life implications of our students' education seems to get lost. Therefore, it is more important than ever that we consciously support and encourage students to connect school-learning to the rest of their lives.
SUGGESTIONS

Step#1

(Intro)

 Students keep a Hidden Villa Connections Journal for several days. Explain that they will need to keep their brains wide awake to all the connections between Hidden Villa and their own lives. Emphasize that they will need to work constantly to find connections between their experiences at Hidden Villa and what they see, hear, do, think and feel during their daily activities.

Step#1a

(Model)

 As a class, brainstorm some ideas of connections your students could make. Take this opportunity to model the depth of thought you want them to use. For example, the following connection would not be acceptable: "The tree outside our classroom reminds me of the trees at Hidden Villa." Remind your students that they need to explain their connections: "Why did it make you think that? How does this connection make you feel? Why is this connection important to you? "
Teacher Note

I first implemented this project as a 24-hour assignment. However, I found that many students made superficial connections or didn't dedicate the time necessary to do an acceptable job on the first try. I realized that making quality connections is a skill I needed to develop in my students with continued modeling and support. Therefore, I would recommend you stretch this project out over several days. During these days I like to require that my students have their connections journals at ALL times (recess, walking home, watching TV, bedtime, etc).

Step#2

 During the project allow at least a little time each day for students to share and discuss their favorite connections. Take advantage of these discussions to guide your students to think more deeply about their connections. Having this time to share and reflect on their connections will open your students' minds to new connections, and develop their abilities to think about and express these connections.

Optional

 When students finish their connection journals, you could have each student choose 2-3 of their favorite connections to illustrate and put together into a class book or bulletin board.
Step#3
 At the conclusion of the connection journal project, have your students re-read all of their connections. "Do any of your connections show a way that you could take action in your own life to make the world better?" If necessary, demonstrate with a connection of your own. (E.g., Connection: The salad in my lunch made me think about the garden at Hidden Villa. I wonder if the vegetables in my salad were organic. Action: Because I know that growing food organically is better for the environment and my health, I am going to try to buy organic food more often.) Generate a list of student ideas on the board.
Step#3a

Guide your students through the following instructions:

  1. Choose one action you want to put into practice in your own life.
  2. Explain why you chose this action.
  3. Describe exactly what you are going to do to meet this challenge.
  4. Make a clear goal(s) for what you are going to accomplish by the end of the first week.
Step#3b
 At the end of the week guide your students in reflecting on their progress. Did they meet their goals? Why or why not? What were the challenges they confronted? How did they overcome them? Ask students to revise their goals if necessary and try again for the next week and report back
Examples

Here are some examples of student action ideas: Use less paper; Re-use paper shopping bags; Start a compost pile; Learn about a different country; Don't lose my pencils; Buy fewer packaged snacks; Sort through my family's waste to find things I can recycle; Help people who are hungry; Bring Eco-Healthy lunches to school; Write the school board to ask for healthier school lunch options; Plant vegetables in pots on my apartment balcony; Put my garbage in the trash can...

  1. I would like to try to make a compost pile at my apartment.
  2. I have noticed how much food waste we put into our garbage can.
  3. I am going to find a way to make a compost pile on our balcony and get my family to put their food scraps in it. I know that I will have to maintain it by finding decomposers to put it in and by keeping it moist. When we finally get fertile soil, I will feed it to the potted plants in our apartment.
  4. This week I am going to find a big plastic container I can reuse for our compost pile, put holes in it and find dirt to put into it.