Education Canada Project #13586

Resources for Rethinking (R4R.ca)

by Learning for a Sustainable Future

Project Report | Mar 27, 2015
R4R expands its children's litterature resources

By Annette Dubreuil | Marketing, Communications and Development

Threatened Book Cover

Since 2012, Learning for a Sustainable Future has offered children's Literature resources for grades K-5 on R4R.ca. These reviews of children's books helped to assist teachers in their efforts to promote literacy through engaging stories that explore important sustainability themes. All of the materials featured have been reviewed by teachers and recommended for use with specific subjects and age groups.

Recently, we have expanded our children't literature resources to include grades 6-12. Some of the new additions to the database include:

Threatened (6-12)
Luc is an orphan who is desperate to escape the abuse and despair of a children's home in Gabon. Stealing from a naive, white professor seems like the ideal way out. When his plan fails, Luc is quickly apprehended. Instead of harsh punishment...
My Chemical Mountain (7-10)
Jason, Charlie and Cornpup are living in a blue collar town where most residents work at the local chemical factory which is polluting the community. The boys spend the summer in a world of pollution biking through industrial waste at the local...
Firestorm (9-12)
The Earth is in trouble but high school senior Jack only cares about chicks, flicks and being the local football star. Then on the very night that he breaks the school rushing record, Jack is thrust into an unthinkable new reality where his whole...

R4R has also made an effort to feature specifc topics with our Children's Literature. For example, we recently celebrated Black History month in February. This was an opportunity to emphasize the history and achievements of Black Canadians. Here are some of the top R4R Picks for Black History Month that were recommended to educators to incorporate into their curriculum:

Crossing To Freedom (6-8)
Young Solomon and his grandfather along with fellow slave Levi have managed to escape their wretched existence on a Georgia plantation. However, tragedy suddenly strikes and Solomon and Levi are forced to travel on alone, leaving Grandpa behind. ...
Viola Desmond Won't Be Budged (K-5)
This beautifully illustrated book introduces students to Viola Desmond, an African Canadian businesswoman who challenged racial segregation in Nova Scotia. Viola was arrested when she refused to move out of the whites-only section of the Roseland...
The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 (6-8)
Set at the height of the civil rights movement, this book explores the entertaining family dynamics of an African American family as they struggle through daily life in Flint, Michigan. The cast of complex characters includes Kenny the scholar and...

Links:

Resources for Rethinking

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Jan 6, 2015
Nature Guides - Top R4R Picks improved!

By Annette Dubreuil | Marketing, Communications and Development

StepOutsideTopPicks

The Top R4R Picks box has been providing educators exemplary classroom resources connected to our Step Outside Nature Guides since its inception. Now, the resource type icons have been added to the Picks box, making it easier for educators to identify the type of resources they'd like to view.

With these resources, educators can expand the happenings in nature from a factoid into an engaging and exciting lesson or unit. Resources include outdoor activities, which encourage teachers to bring students into the school yard to discover the local flora, fauna and climate events.

With future support, we will provide guides for each of Canada's geographic regions, ensuring teachers have more locally relevant and accurate nature happenings to explore with their students.

Example of success story (see http://resources4rethinking.ca/en/step-outside/success-stories for complete story):

Students commented about how the role they were in changed the way they looked at the area around them. I presented the questions they asked which I had recorded and invited the students to respond to some of the questions in role as a scientist or poet. The resulting work showed an amazing variety of text forms and art styles. Poetry ranged from the classic acrostic poem, through haiku, rhyming and free verse. Poets had the opportunity to learn about specific poetry forms through small group instruction, the web and seeing various examples in anthologies. This poetry was accompanied by an equally diverse variety of visual art ranging from watercolour landscapes, impressionistic pastels to realistic sketches.

Thank you for supporting Step Outside and Resources for Rethinking. With your support, students are getting to experience and build a relationship with nature. Do you remember playing in nature as a kid? Remember how much fun you had? Wouldn't it be great if all kids had the opportunity to see nature up close and be excited by it. With Step Ouside and your support, that's exactly what happens. Improving engagement leads to better learning.

Top R4R Picks box - improved!

Students Outdoors - bird watching

Links:

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Oct 2, 2014
Now it's easier to access new resource reviews!

By Annette Dubreuil | Marketing, Communications and Development

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