Guest Post Written By: Kristin Lems
As the last, sizzling days of summer arrive, many teachers are finishing plans for the new school year. If rising temperatures and extreme weather have nudged you to include environmental education in your lessons, here are five practical, classroom-ready ideas to help you get started.
1. Use class projects to explore climate topics
Online project repositories such as ThinkQuest host student-created projects from schools across the country on a variety of environmental themes, including multiple projects about global warming. Encourage your students to browse existing projects to learn from peers, or guide them in creating and submitting their own class project. Student-written explanations—like a clear, kid-friendly description of the greenhouse effect that compares Earth’s atmosphere to a car heating up in the sun—help solidify understanding and make complex topics accessible.
2. Build a classroom library of powerful children’s books
Storytelling is a powerful way to teach stewardship. Include well-crafted children’s books about caring for the planet in your classroom library and plan a unit around them. A few favorites to consider are The Lorax by Dr. Seuss, The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono, Just a Dream by Chris Van Allsburg, The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry, and The Legacy of Luna by Julia Butterfly Hill. These books spark discussion and inspire students to see how their choices matter. Many titles also offer multimedia adaptations that can supplement lessons.
3. Organize a school-wide shoe drive
Collecting used athletic shoes is an engaging, community-minded activity that teaches recycling and reuse. Programs like Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe take worn gym shoes and repurpose the materials into playground surfacing and athletic tracks. A school-wide drive can include simple steps—promotion, collection points, sorting, and drop-off—and can be expanded with related recycling lessons and service-learning opportunities.
4. Turn used books into revenue and recycling
Partnering with a book-collection program that accepts used books for resale or redistribution can keep books circulating, reduce landfill waste, and raise funds for school sustainability efforts. Some book-reuse organizations provide boxes, labels, and pickup, paying participating nonprofits per accepted book and supporting literacy initiatives. Hosting periodic sort-and-pack events can be a fun community activity—pizza and teamwork make an afternoon of sorting rewarding and productive.
5. Use comprehensive curriculum resources and local initiatives
State and local environmental education programs often provide free, educator-focused curricular resources on a wide range of topics. For example, initiatives like the Wisconsin Green and Healthy Schools program offer lesson materials, webinars, newsletters, and statewide events such as recycling competitions. Even if you’re not located in that state, these resources can inspire ideas and classroom activities you can adapt for your district.
Planning for climate change has already begun in many school districts and municipalities, so avoiding the topic isn’t a realistic option. While we can’t immediately reverse all effects of extreme weather and long-term climate shifts, systematic environmental education helps reduce carbon footprints and supports healthier lifestyle choices. Studies of school-based environmental programs show students who participate learn to conserve energy and water, increase recycling, reduce car use, and engage more with their communities. Children can be powerful agents of change when teachers help guide them toward sustainable habits.
Practical back-to-school strategies for families
Simple practices at home and at school reinforce environmental lessons:
- Donate outgrown clothes to shelters to extend their useful life and reduce waste.
- Choose reusable or minimal packaging for lunches, and consider purchasing locally grown food when possible.
- If safe and feasible, encourage walking or biking to school to reduce vehicle trips; otherwise use school buses where available to lower overall car traffic.
- Organize carpooling among staff and families to save fuel, time, and money.
Victor Surma, a Penn State alumnus and advocate for school environmental health, offers many practical tips like these for making the school year greener and healthier.
Integrating environmental education into the year’s curriculum need not be daunting. Start with one classroom project, a book unit, or a simple collection drive and build from there. These small actions add up—students learn to make sustainable choices, families adopt healthier practices, and schools become models of community stewardship.
Kristin Lems is a professor at National Louis University in Chicago, founder of the school’s Green Committee, and a longtime supporter of public transportation.
Kristin Lems
www.kristinlems.com – about the artist, itinerary, photos