Restorative Practices Course Description
Course Description: This course is an overview of how the social science of restorative practices can be applied to sustainable practices in environment education. The use of restorative practices combined with sustainable practices addresses repairing harm to the environment, strengthening student leadership skills with emphasis on environmental stewardship and strengthening civil society by providing students with opportunities to collaborate with members of the community to engage in service work relating to sustainable and restorative practices. Students will also engage in activities that strengthen communication and debate skills as we examine environmental issues through the lens of restorative practices.
Content Overview:
Cycle 1:
Cycle 1:
- Erdkinder Essay
- Human Population and Environmental Stewardship
- Basics of Raised Bed Gardening
- Collaborate with master gardener from Mecklenburg County to build raised bed gardens
- Research and plan fall gardens
- Learn how to plant seeds and seedlings
- Mulch, compost workshop and worms
- Watering and rainwater collection
- Soil life
- Organic pests and disease control
- Collaboration with Friendship Gardens
- Food Inc: Chapter 1-Fast Food to All Food
- Do animals have the right to a certain quality of life?
- Erdkinder Essay
- Human Population and Environmental Stewardship
- Fall garden maintenance
- Collaboration with Friendship Trays
- Intro to Hydroponics
- What is hydroponic gardening?
- How does it differ from raised bed gardening?
- Set up and grow vegetables in a hydroponic system
- Local Farms and Farmer’s Markets
- Winter Gardening
- Food Inc: Chapter 2-Corucopia of Choices
- Do people have the right to know what is in their food?
- Food Inc: Chapter 3-Unintended Consequences
- Who is responsible for keeping our food safe?
- Erdkinder Essay
- Human Population and Environmental Stewardship
- Winter garden maintenance
- Spring garden planning
- Hydroponics maintenance
- Continued collaboration with Friendship Gardens and Trays
- Food Inc: Chapter 4-The Dollar Menu
- Should access to healthy food be a right for everyone?
- Food Inc: Chapter 5-In the Grass
- Do animals have the right to a certain quality of life?
- Food Inc: Chapter 6-Hidden Costs
- Does it matter to you which food companies produce your food?
- Erdkinder Essay
- Human Population and Environmental Stewardship
- Spring garden planting and maintenance
- Flowers and pollinators
- Cooking and gardening
- Food Inc: Chapter 7-From Seed to the Supermarket
- Should companies be able to own the DNA contained in plant seeds?
- Food Inc: Chapter 8-The Veil
- Should a company have the power to decide what information to give consumers about the food it produces?
- Food Inc: Chapter 9-Shocks to the System
- What individual or collective actions are you willing to take to improve our food system, and what would be their impact?
- Compost 101 for other schools led by Montessori High School
- Food Rules Products
- Final Erdkinder Project