This lesson plan is licensed under Creative Commons.
In this lesson, students analyze how art and poetry can be used to talk about climate justice and write their own climate change poem with a message of hope.
Step 1 - Inquire: Students read the poem “Dear Matafele Peinem” by Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner and reflect on what they noticed, wondered, and felt about the poems.
Step 2 - Investigate: Students analyze a poem and investigate how climate change is affecting communities and people around the world.
Step 3 - Inspire: Students use the information they collected to create a piece of poetry about a climate change issue.
Positives
This lesson aligns with Hawai'i's Nā Hopena A'o HĀ-BREATH Framework.
Students are given voice and choice throughout the lesson.
Students engage with a variety of resources and choose the ones that help them best learn.
Students use creative means to give voice to climate change action.
Additional Prerequisites
Teacher should preview resources and be familiar with the poem before the discussion.
Teacher may need some background understanding of the history of the Marshall Islands.
Students should have a basic understanding of imagery and alliteration, as well as why they are important.
Students should have a working knowledge of climate change to engage with this lesson. Starting resources include:
Students should be adept at opening links and looking at resources on their own.
Students need access to laptops or tablets to see or watch resources.
Differentiation
Many parts of the lesson can be completed individually, in pairs, or in groups depending on what the teacher believes is best.
Teacher can provide more structure or specific writing elements for students as needed.
Students and teachers can explore and discuss the history or experience of the Marshallese people, both in their home country and in Hawai‘i. Resources can include the following:
Students can research other climate change poems to attach to their projects, analyzing the connection between the two.
Students can use poetry and other forms of art in this lesson to communicate and share their ideas for tackling climate change. In addition to learning how to spot alliteration in poetry, they will be motivated to share their own experiences about the effects of climate change and ways they can take deep, rapid, and sustained action. It is advised to teach this lesson because it passed our science review.
