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Place-based Service-learning (PBSL)
These resources will help you understand and develop place-based service-learning projects. Items marked with * are part of the NNREC Members Lending Library. Linked ISBNs below go to either Acorn Naturalists or Amazon.
Resources
* The Complete Guide to Service Learning: Proven, Practical Ways to Engage Students in Civic Responsibility, Academic Curriculum, & Social Action, Cathryn Berger Kaye.
Minneapolis MN: Free Spirit Publishing, 2003. ISBN: 1-57542-133-X.
* Connecting Service-learning to the Curriculum: A Workbook for Teachers and Administrators, Susan Bonthron.
Vermont: Community Works Press, 2001. ISBN: 0-9713583-0-3. A comprehensive resource created by teachers for teachers. The Workbook supports educators seeking to integrate service-learning. Whether you are simply curious about service-learning, at an intermediate stage, or an experienced practitioner, you will find useful discussion accompanied by invaluable tools, examples, and resources.
* The Service Learning Bookshelf : A Bibliography of Fiction & Nonfiction to Inspire Student Learning and Action, Cathryn Berger Kaye. ABCD Books, 2000. ISBN: 0-9678072-2-0. The Service Learning Bookshelf, second edition, has descriptions of 171 nonfiction, picture books, and novels selected to enhance your service learning activities. Includes sections on What is Service Learning? and Using the Service Learning Bookshelf to strengthen your classroom and program activities. Read the interviews of five outstanding authors.
Children's Literature
Hey, Little Ant, Phillip M. Hoose. Wonderful, song-based children’s picture book that uses empathy to teach children about alternatives to violent and bullying behavior. Story involves a negotiation between an ant about to be flattened and the child who is threatening it. The outcome is unresolved, leaving a perfect opportunity for discussions on what the child should do next. Lessons and suggestions for classroom discussion are provided. A creative and nonthreatening way to introduce an important topic to children ages 4-9. ISBN: 1-883672-54-6.
If the World Were a Village, A Book About the World’s People, Smith. Expands children’s vision of the world by shrinking the world down to 100 people, and then discussing how those people are categorized (30 out of 100 are under 19 years old, 17 cannot read or write, 22 speak Chinese etc). Wonderful way to introduce children to the diverse, global village we live in, encouraging them to embrace the bigger picture with the goal of reducing prejudice and narrow-mindedness that can cause both interpersonal and even national conflict. ISBN: 1-55074-779-7.
* How Humans Make Friends, Loreen Leedy. ISBN: 0-8234-1223-7.
* Acting for Nature: What Young People Around the World Are Doing to Protect the Environment, Carl Dennis Buell. Berkeley: Heyday Books, 2000. ISBN: 1-890771-24-4. Describes the efforts of fifteen young people to protect the environment in their communities in different countries around the world.
