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Philanthropy—Why We Did It

Grades: 
3, 4, 5
Subjects: 
Arts Education
Language Arts
Mathematics
Philanthropy
Science
Keywords & Concepts: 
Cause/Effect
Civic Responsibility/Virtue
Environmental Stewardship
Measurement
Reflection

This lesson is a reflection on the beach clean-up experience. 

Duration 
PrintOne 30-Minute Session
Objectives 

The learner will:

  • estimate and measure the weight of collected debris.
  • make conclusions about the environmental status at the beach.
Materials 
  • scale to weigh the bags of garbage (pounds and kilograms)
  • tally sheets from beach clean-up (previous lesson)
  • poetry and sketches from beach clean-up (previous lesson)
Related Resources 

Instructions

Print

  1. Anticipatory set: 

    Share pictures and stories and engage emotions from the beach clean-up experience. Discuss the following:

    • Why did we clean up the beach? What difference does it make?
    • How does what we did fit the definition of philanthropy?
    • How did the beach look before and after our cleanup?
    • How did it make you feel?

  2. Working in their groups from the clean-up day, the youth review and complete the tallies of the data sheets from the beach. 

  3. They make observations about what kind of trash was found and how it got there, what they found most often, what was the strangest item. (Be ready for surprises…could get interesting!) Ask them to make conclusions about environmental damage to the beach based on the materials collected and how a small step could make a difference (e.g., much of the trash is food-related and could be lessened if there were more trash receptacles available). Discuss the conclusions as a group.

  4. Estimate the weight of the team bag of debris that was gathered. Weigh the bags of garbage and get a whole group total in pounds as well as kilograms. Discuss the predictions they made about the weight prior to the collection. Discuss what could be done next with the data to monitor the health of the beach. What is the next right thing to do to make a difference?

  5. Youth write in their journals about their feelings generated in this philanthropic project. Give them time to revise and edit their poetry and art from the beach field day.

    Spend time reading the poetry and sharing artwork in a community circle. 

Philanthropy Framework

  1. Strand PHIL.II Philanthropy and Civil Society
    1. Standard PCS 07. Skills of Civic Engagement
      1. Benchmark E.4 Analyze information to differentiate fact from opinion based on the investigation of issues related to the common good.
  2. Strand PHIL.III Philanthropy and the Individual
    1. Standard PI 01. Reasons for Individual Philanthropy
      1. Benchmark E.1 Describe one reason why a person might give or volunteer.
  3. Strand PHIL.IV Volunteering and Service
    1. Standard VS 05. Integrating the Service Experience into Learning
      1. Benchmark E.3 Identify outcomes from the service.