by SEMIS Coalition | Jun 10, 2020 | Events, High School, Intergenerational Dialogue, Middle Grades, Professional Development Materials, Student Voice, Upper Elementary
…the future is nothing but transformation—the transformation of today. Paulo Freire SEMIS Director Ethan Lowenstein welcomes particpants to the 2020 Youth Voice Fishbowl. SEMIS Coalition launched on May 18, 2020 a series of dialogues, presentations and workshops...
by SEMIS Coalition | Jul 2, 2017 | Uncategorized
What does a Great Lakes prairie have to do with classroom learning? NeinasElementary, in collaboration with The Greening of Detroit, DPS and Friends of The Rouge, engaged students outside the classroom in their local ecology. Their...
by SEMIS Coalition | Jun 15, 2015 | Ecosystems / Biodiversity, High School, Uncategorized
Following the yearlong investigation into permaculture as a teaching method, one interesting aspect of this design method is tapping into a complex communication network among plant and animal communities that supports more harmonious agriculture systems, which are...
by SEMIS Coalition | Jun 1, 2015 | Gardens, Uncategorized, Water Quality / Studies
“The atmosphere, the earth, the water and the water cycle – those things are good gifts. The ecosystems, the ecosphere, those are good gifts. We have to regard them as gifts because we couldn’t make them. We have to regard them as good gifts because we...
by SEMIS Coalition | May 31, 2015 | Uncategorized
Background: The “ecojustice with/in disability studies” affinity group grew out of shared interests at the SEMIS summer institute. The group looks at the intersection and effect of attitudes towards human animals, nonhuman animals, and plants. The premise is that...
by SEMIS Coalition | May 18, 2015 | Food Systems, Gardens, Uncategorized, Upper Elementary
When the exhausted soil of their family plot doesn’t yield enough and her father leaves to find work, María Luz plants the winter vegetables using new farming techniques she learns from her teacher, Don Pedro. Marigolds repel insect pests. Terracing and using...
by SEMIS Coalition | May 4, 2015 | Uncategorized
“Exploration of the natural world begins in early childhood, flourishes in middle childhood, and continues in adolescence as a pleasure and a source of strength for social action.” – David Sobel How do you adapt your place-based education to nourish the...
by SEMIS Coalition | Apr 20, 2015 | EcoJustice, Leadership Development, Uncategorized
In honor of Earth Day, brush up on the EcoJustice basics through the following video: In this video, Rebecca Martusewicz defines how the the Ecojustice Education masters program emerged from “a crisis in the way we think about the way we are in relationship to each...
by SEMIS Coalition | Apr 6, 2015 | Green Energy, High School, Middle Grades, Uncategorized
How do we educate on the lesson of climate change that is relevant for youth? How do we understand the root causes of these changes, and how do we plan for a resilient future? These are difficult questions that are often hard to teach in a way that hits home...
by SEMIS Coalition | Mar 31, 2015 | Civic Action / Leadership, High School, Middle Grades, Upper Elementary
Are our schools preparing young people to be informed, active citizens of a democratic society? Are we instilling in our young people the dispositions and values needed to be civic actors in their communities? Is our educational system giving them the skills and...
by SEMIS Coalition | Mar 23, 2015 | Uncategorized
“If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in.” – Rachel Carson, environmental activist and author How...
by SEMIS Coalition | Mar 9, 2015 | Environmental Impact, Inquiry-Based Learning, STEM, Uncategorized, Water Quality / Studies
How do you talk about the larger impacts of the Great Lakes watershed on the health and wellbeing of our region? How do you tell the big picture of this bioregion and your place within it? This feature length video goes into detail about the long-term impacts of...
by SEMIS Coalition | Feb 27, 2015 | Uncategorized
What resources or ideas do you have for our new Tools for Teachers page? Please use the comments section of the blog to post your best ideas and links around the following topics: High Quality Environmental Content Civic Engagement Processes Content Standards...
by SEMIS Coalition | Feb 23, 2015 | Common Core, Literacy, STEM, Upper Elementary, Water Quality / Studies
In our continuing investigation into EcoJustice Literacy, we’re asking teachers and students to reflect on the following questions about the classic story, Paddle-To-The-Sea: How could you discuss the journey from upstream to downstream when...
by SEMIS Coalition | Feb 12, 2015 | Place-Based Education, Social & Emotional Learning, STEM, Student Voice
How do you use learning media to tell stories of place? This month, we’re featuring three powerful place-based educators’ approaches to using technology to tell their stories. Laura DePalma from the James and Grace Lee Boggs School, Makena Riley, from...
by SEMIS Coalition | Feb 4, 2015 | Uncategorized
“Until you dig a hole, you plant a tree, you water it and make it survive, you haven’t done a thing. You are just talking.” – Wangari Maathai Are there projects in your community that mimic the great work of Wangari Maathai? What services do trees...
by SEMIS Coalition | Jan 30, 2015 | Uncategorized
The focus of the January 30th professional development day will delve deeper into the year-long investigation of historical perspective and the way we can use this narrative to tell the story of place in new and compelling ways. The History Affinity Group began this...
by SEMIS Coalition | Jan 16, 2015 | Community Stewardship, Ecosystems / Biodiversity, Environmental Impact, Food Systems, Gardens, Uncategorized
We invite the participants in the Permaculture Design Certification, which includes several SEMIS members, to start a discussion about how permaculture has opened up new insights into creative design with nature, and empowered them to take action in their...
by SEMIS Coalition | Dec 15, 2014 | Events, Place-Based Education
Teachers and partners joined together for another great statewide conference this November. The theme of presentations ranged from civic engagement and community partnership best practices, to student voice and STEAM connections. Here are highlights from SEMIS...
by SEMIS Coalition | Dec 15, 2014 | EcoJustice, Place-Based Education
The SEMIS Coalition and others around the country are engaging in new and creative ways to make learning about community issues relevant and impactful to youth. Much of place-based education and the EcoJustice framework that we use in the SEMIS Coalition gets to just...
by SEMIS Coalition | Dec 15, 2014 | Place-Based Education
It is always great to see SEMIS members celebrated in the media, and the SEMIS Coalition has received a lot of it in the past month. These articles feature Neinas Elementary and Hope of Detroit, as well as the larger Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative. Detroit kids...
by SEMIS Coalition | Dec 15, 2014 | Civic Action / Leadership, Community History, Early Childhood, EcoJustice, Ecosystems / Biodiversity, Environmental Impact, Food Security, Food Systems, Gardens, High School, Inquiry-Based Learning, Literacy, Lower Elementary, Middle Grades, Place-Based Education, Social & Emotional Learning, Upper Elementary, Water Quality / Studies
Have you used these books? Share how! At the Summer Institute, teachers received several books to support EcoJustice literacy and investigating the commons. These books were chosen for their support of a few different concepts: integrating multiple perspectives into...
