ESOL Earth Day
Earth Day Lesson
Purpose: The purpose of this lesson is for students to practice and improve English conversation, writing, vocabulary, and reading through the lens of the Earth Day holiday (April 22nd). Also, students can brainstorm and share what we can do to preserve the Earth on a global or personal scale.
Audience: This lesson is intended for an Intermediate group of adult English language learners, but can easily be adapted for other ages and levels.
Time: 30-45 minutes
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Prep work: Teacher should prepare for the lesson by opening up the OER “Thousands of cars on the freeway” by Katie Hale at California State University (found at https://www.oercommons.org/courses/thousands-of-cars-on-the-freeway) on available iPads or computers. NOTE: if this technology is not available, teachers can also print out sets of the photos or use a projector to show the class the photos.
(OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES) The teacher can connect with a guest speaker to come talk about preservation, recycling, or another Earth Day related topic. Local colleges and universities can be great places to find potential speakers. Also, the teacher can set up a time for the group to go outside and clean up trash around the school building.
I. Warm-up: The word "preserve" is written on the board, with the sentence "It is important to preserve the Earth, especially for our children." In small groups, students read the sentence and discuss the meaning of the word preserve.
II. Group discussion/Vocabulary brainstorm: Students are split up into small groups of 2-3 people (preferably mixed-level groups of students with different levels of literacy and spoken English). Each group is given an iPad or directed to use a computer that has the “Thousands of cars on the freeway” OER available. As a group, students are instructed to scroll through the pictures on the site and discuss what they see. Together they should write down a list of vocabulary words based on their observations. For instance, students could generate a list that includes “pollution,” “smog,” and “garbage” from the photos. Students can use the iPads, computers, or dictionaries to help them make this list.
Then, each group shares one observation they had about one of the photos with the class. Vocabulary words are shared and generated on the board. To connect to previous knowledge, students are encouraged to talk about the environmental situations they saw at home and what they see here in the United States. They are also free to discuss what the governments of these countries are doing (or not doing) to prevent some of these man made environmental problems. If the conversation lags, the teacher can ask some of these questions as well.
III. Writing/Reading: Students are assigned new partners (again, a mixed-level group would be appropriate), and each group receives a paper with the question, “What can we do to preserve the Earth?” Using the generated vocabulary words and the iPads, students should work together to answer the question in writing. They should use the resources that are available (iPads or computers, for instance), in addition to their own ideas. Students can answer the question from a global perspective (what can countries do?) or personal (what can I do?)
After each group has completed their writing, they are to pass their papers to the next group. Each group has three minutes to read the other group’s writing sample and comment on it (depending on what is appropriate for the specific class or previous lessons, the group can comment on grammar and/or content). Then, the groups will pass the papers again for three minutes until every group has had the chance to read everyone else’s ideas.
IV. Class Discussion: Finally, the teacher should write “What can we do to preserve the Earth?” on the board. Students should then discuss their ideas as a class, and talk about what they read in the writing samples. The teacher can write suggestions on the board, and then demonstrate correct grammar, sentence structure, or spelling (depending on the sentence). If needed, students are able to correct their own work based on the class discussion.
V. Assessment: At the end of class, the teacher should collect the writing samples that students created together. These can be used as assessments to look for grammar errors, sentence structure mistakes, and the clarity of student explanation. Also, the teacher may note any correction that other students or the writer made, to see if the potential new grammar concepts that were demonstrated on the board need more practice.
The teacher should also be continually observing and listening to student discussion. This is to make sure it is on topic and to note any persistent errors. In the next lessons, these issues may be addressed.
VI. (OPTIONAL) Guest Speaker: If desired, a guest speaker could talk to the students about what else can be done to the preserve the Earth. For instance, a speaker could come from the city’s recycling center to talk about recycling at home, and the safe and correct way to recycle when cleaning up outside.
VII. (OPTIONAL) Action: Finally, the teacher and students can go outside to collect trash outside of the school building. In many cases, the potential guest speaker (or the teacher) should first talk to students about the safe and correct ways to pick up and dispose of trash. Gloves and trash bags should be readily available for students to use.
Thanks for reading!
By: Joanna Stratman
Have a great day :)