[StevenSlaughter]

Hello All. New to this board and relatively new to awareness of PO. I'd like your opinions on something. I am a public school teacher, teaching fifth grade. I also have an ecology club that does a lot of gardening, etc. In the past few years, I've been teaching my students how to garden, about wind power, worm composting, non-petrol cars, etc.

So this year starts in just a couple of weeks and I've been wondering how best to communicate PO to my students (and, inevitably, their parents), if at all. The issue is really their age. If I taught highschool, I wouldn't even hesitate, but we're talking about 10-11 yr. olds (younger for my ecology club). Those of you who haven't been around kids lately, or since you were one may think of an 11 yr. old as a tiny little twerp. I will say that, while they are young, at this age, they can think, discuss, and write at a level far higher than you might imagine. They have been made aware of environmental issues much earlier than any of us were as children, and they are deeply concerned about it all. In fact, their awareness is quite a burden for them to bear.

Still, they are children and, as a parent myself of a 5, 7, and 10 yr. old, I am a firm believer in deferring to parents on sensitive topics. Unlike some progressive educators, I respect parent's rights on many subjects.

So...how and what to expose them to at this age? If any of you are elementary teachers, what have you done? Parents...what about with your own kids?

One strategy I've been considering is to include PO in the broader list of other environmental and energy topics while avoiding the doomsday scenarios. At the same time, I am thinking, "What real-world skills will benefit them the most?" As such, I've been thinking of approaching some of my science units from the perspective of pre-industrial tools. For example, while I have seen the teaching of physics by building things like model rollercoasters (really fun, but not all that practical), perhaps it would be more useful to teach them by studying, and maybe building models of, things like water wheels, mills, windmills, solar air and water heaters/collectors, horse-powered plows, and of course gardening, etc. You could learn the principal of the lever with a ruler and a textbook, but maybe kids will one day need to pry boulder out of a field, so learning about the lever in this way would be more helful in the long term.

Anyway, I'd welcome your thoughts and ideas.

Warm Regards,

Steven Slaughter
Chicago

[Cashmere]

"Mommy, mommy, today our teacher told us that a bunch of people are going to die."

Don't.

Not your place, won't do any good, wrong audience, too young to be burdened with it, and when the parents/admin catch wind of it, it's your ass.

Don't.

[Dezakin]

Good luck finding the space between education and indoctrination.

[jlw61]

IMHO, continue teaching them gardening and other important skills and keep the PO stuff more or less out of it. Not much more than how we think oil was created and that it's a finite resource. Keep it simple. While 5th graders can absorb a lot, I'd be more inclined to teach them self sufficiency than to give them something to worry about.

[Jack]

Instead of teaching peak oil directly, teach exponential growth.

Start with a sheet of paper, fold it in half, then half again. Note the increase in thickness (layers) and the decrease in size. Note the effect applies despite the initial size of the paper.

On the board, draw a one-inch square. Provide an un-quiz (i.e, a multiple choice quiz that does not impact their grade) for how many doublings it can go through before it covers a square yard.

Then do a math exercise - perhaps using the population of your city - to determine what a modest growth rate implies over 20 years, 40 years, 60 years, and longer.

Another exercise might examine the growing use for oil. Calculate the demand in 5, 10, and 15 years. You can then mention that supply seems to be constrained at the present level.

If they understand exponential growth, they will ultimately come to understand peak oil. With exponential growth, you can always point out that the same principle covers compound interest, thus giving you cover with parents and administrators.

Welcome to the site.

[Roccland]

I would not "tell" the students anything...

rather I would ask them what they think is important.

As a teacher I would expect facilitation of discussing ideas to be of primary importance.

"green" is being sold everywhere...

They know.

It is your job to guide the discussion in a meaningful way.

And if you can pull this off and get past the indoctrination that you are currently required to "teach" the kids...well then my hat is off to you...

[vision-master]

It's Alright Ma

[MadScientist]

#1. local > global. The importance of family and local community.

#2. emergency preparation. Being prepared for loss of electricity and/or service disruptions from any number of reasons. the "self reliance" mindset vs. the gvt welfare mindset.

#3. appreciation for the natural world and sustainable living.

#4. science experiments relating to overshoot and collapse of bacteria cultures. how population = food supply for all organisms.

#5. water. what makes it potable. how to tell if it is. how to purify it if it isnt.

sounds like you are a leader in your community. Learn what makes a community resilient and encourage those who value your input to appreciate it as well.

[Nano]

IMO Peak Oil is part of the subject-matter of hell and should therefore not be introduced to children. Only 1 in 1000 people are capable of dealing with hellish subjects safely and productively, I'd wager.

[Carlhole]

When I was in 5th grade, my teacher used to read stories to us and ask for comments, checking our comprehension of them.

For example, I remember one of them was called "Three Boys In A Cave". It was about some kids who got lost spelunking. Terrifying! Fascinating!

You might be able to find an account of the Easter Islanders, the people who destroyed their island because they could not comprehend their dependence upon the fragile ecosystem there. So they foolishly continued their doomed customs and rituals until every last palm tree was cut down.

If you could perhaps find a story of the Easter Islanders to read and then relate that to our present day world...

[doodlebug2]

Maybe bring it up for discussion and then have the kids write a paper on it, just so they can think about it.
Ask them a question like" What would happen if we ran out of oil?''
"what would happen, what would we/you do?"
Start a discussion saying just pretend it happened. I think the kids would get into that. It would be a theorectical question and leave it at that. Then the kids at least pondered it for themselves.

[Daniel_Plainview]

If I were in your shoes, I would show the students Richard Heinberg's video presentation titled "Peak Everything."

In that way, the students can see the larger framework, and after they grasp that, you could focus upon "peak oil" as appropriate.

[steam_cannon]

When I was in 5th grade, my teacher used to read stories to us and
ask for comments, checking our comprehension of them.

Here's a cartoon maybe right for that age group...


Peak Oil Cartoon - Luz Girl of the Knowing
http://www.transmission-x.com/luz/2007/ ... llo-world/
http://www.peakoil.com/fortopic39491.html

Instead of teaching peak oil directly, teach exponential growth.

+1

I would not "tell" the students anything...

rather I would ask them what they think is important.

As a teacher I would expect facilitation of discussing ideas to be of primary importance.

"green" is being sold everywhere...

They know.

+1

[kpeavey]

I wish I was 10. Everything was so much easier then. A year would last forever. Most things in the world were still new, begging to be explored. Folks are giving the kids more freedom to do things at that age. Even starting to form some opinions.

Age 10 is an especially important time. Reason and recall are developing in leaps and bounds. Impressions made at that age will last the rest of their lives.

In 10 years, these kids will be 20. In 20 years, they will be 30. This puts them at the peak of fitness and health, just starting families, and looking towards the future at a time when the ramifications of peak oil will be striking deeply into the culture of the developed world. They will be the ones who will bear a great burden. They won't have what we have. Their world will be different from ours in ways we are just beginning to understand.

Rather than fill their noggins with notions of catabolic collapse, die off, and Hobbesian realities, plant the seeds that will grow along with them and which will give them a survival advantage.

I'm thinking you could put together a series of classes and experiments using the sun as a focus. The diversity of subjects and high level of interaction offers a plethora of learning opportunities

Water
A clear plastic bottle filled with water and left in the sun will purify the water as a result of UV. If this was all they learned this year, it may be enough to ease suffering and disease down the road.

Cooking
There is ample information on solar cooking. A solar box cooker can be fashioned out of materials available for low cost or free with some creativity, and would not exceed the skill level of a 10 year old. When I was a kid, one of my favorite things was a class project where we got to eat something. There are all sorts of designs, using several would make it easy to feed the class.
Simple Solar Cooker Demonstration
Make this one with cardboard and foil
Slant Faced oven
This one has a kid in it.

Food Storage
The sun can be used to dehydrate foods. Apples, carrots, banana chips, tomato, all sorts of fruits and vegetables can be tried out. This could be connected with a history lesson.

Hot Water
This is an easy one. Leave a hose in the sun, it gets hot. Have the kids learn about how it works and why. If the kids are sharp, give them the project of figuring out what would be needed to offer hot water for handwashing in the cafeteria. This has the ability to become more than a project if the school lets you actually install the thing. This also leads to germ theory and sanitation lessons.

Off Grid Laundry
If you can make hot water, you can also wash clothes. You'll need a bucket and some detergent. After that, you'll need a clothesline. I bet the novelty of this one sticks with them.

Greenhouse
Why the sun heats a greenhouse is a fine lesson. While your at it, seed propagation is a useful skill. This may be out of the class budget, but may be a potential field trip destination.

You are limited by imagination.

[Lanthanide]

I'm not sure you should directly bring up peak oil in any way. But teaching about exponential growth systems is a good idea.

Some ideas with this:
* The old proverb about the chinese emporer that wants a chessboard made, so the artisan asks for 1 grain of rice for the 1st square, 2 grains of rice for the 2nd square, 4 grains of rice for the 3rd square, and double onwards until all 64 squares are finished. This ends up being many millenia worth of rice production to cover the 64th square.

* Science experiment where bacteria grow in a petrii dish until they all die

* Compounding interest (help give them an appreciation for saving instead of spending)


Also, I think giving them an appreciation for what oil is used for could be useful. You don't need to mention that oil is running out - they'll hear that sooner or later, probably within the next 5 years. But if you give them an understanding of just what oil is used in, when they hear things like "oil is running out" it will mean so much more to them. So you can talk about how oil is used to make all kinds of plastics, as well as fuels etc. One way I could imagine doing this is bringing in assorted plastic objects in a bag and taking them out 1 by 1, saying "what have they all got in common?", bonus points if the bag itself is plastic.

[PeakingAroundtheCorner]

Many good posts above. I agree that you should not put forth a lesson plan that stresses peak oil in any sort of doomerish way. I told my 19 year old step-son about it and now he goes aroud saying stuff like "What does it matter, the world as we know it is going to end anyway."

Teach them whatever you can about how to live with less energy, as others have suggested already. But, also teach them about population and resources. A combination of both will give them the basic info they need that should allow them to reach their own conclusions regarding peak oil later at an older age.

I keep telling my stepson that just because things look bad, that is no excuse for giving up. I tell him that we can't give up now and we can learn now to deal with it when it comes.

[Revi]

I talk about peak oil in some of my classes, but I try not to be too doomerish about it. We have a recycling group and we had a sustainable future club, but it proved to be unsustainable.

I think we have to project a positive future. Actions speak louder than words. We need to model some positive actions.

Kids are bombarded by doom all day. Global warming, the economic collapse, etc. They don't really live in that world anyway. They have their friends, their activities and their studies to deal with. Doing things like recycling is what makes education relevant and fun.

Make it fun. Really.

Here's a youtube movie of a project we did a couple of years ago:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0JNohHaqM4

[AlexdeLarge]

Go to the Asscociation for the study of peak oil and gas website.

ASPO International

[retiredguy]

When I was in fifth grade, I was studying potential fallout patterns for my home area. I tried (unsuccessfully) to convince my father to build a fallout shelter.

The threat of a nuclear holocaust was a real fear and understood in all of it gory details by many of my friends.

Kids are resilient and, ultimately, optimistic. Somehow, I, and most of my friends, survived to geezerhood.

I'd recommend presenting the facts about peak oil (and other finite resources).

The best teachers I had challenged me, didn't give me pat answers.

Keeping the next generation ignorant of the biggest challenge they will face in their lifespan does none of us any good.

Just the opinion of a cranky old guy.

[Micki]

Tell them but don't dramatize and keep timeframes and consequences open.
i.e. stick to things like how important oil is and what it is used for, that it is finite and talk in an encouraging way about getting off oil dependence and use of alternative energies.
Also mention some other negative effects of oil and other fossil fuels like polution etc.

Maybe also talk about costs. Like how much food is shipped.
If that food was grown in the backyard you could save that money to buy candy and other stuff or whatever. (leave them with a positive association to growing own food.)

As you already know at that age they can't comprehend the whole concept of PO but plant a seed that they can remember.
We don't know if it will do any good but it sure won't hurt and you have done what you could.
Good luck.