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 • CITY YOUTH: LEARNING TO BE USEFUL!

June, 2006

A series of master classes was organized for Moscow teachers, educators, and heads of school and youth hobby groups and clubs as part of the project “City Youth: Learning To Be  Useful”

In June 2006, at the House of Moscow Public Organizations, a series of master classes was organized for Moscow teachers, educators, and heads of school and youth hobby groups and clubs as part of the project “City Youth: Learning To Be  Useful”, which became one of the winners of the city’s contest of socially significant projects.

The master classes were led by heads of the best environmental and social projects for schoolchildren and youth carried out in Russia’s regions under the international ROLL Program.

The goal of these master classes was to share experience in introducing innovative methods of involving youth into the life of their city and, specifically, into socially useful activities in the environmental area.

“A child is walking along a path. A lovely lands on his shoulder… Please stop! Do not pass by such beautiful moments! We will not be able to solve the mounting environmental issues without bringing up an integrated and understanding personality who loves nature, his home and family. You are helping teachers to educated not passive contemplators, but active citizens capable of living in harmony with the surrounding world…” 
This is only one of the many responses to the work of the creators and facilitators of these master classes that gave a chance to representatives of Moscow schools, colleges, nature parks, child education centers, museums and the mass media to undergo training and increase their qualification in the area of environmental education. The results of the master classes will be used for developing and implementing a series of mini-projects for educational institutions in Moscow that work with schoolchildren and youth. Adolescents involved in these projects will take part in activities aimed at preserving the city natural environment and will learn about traditional nature management techniques.
In particular, the attendees of the master classes from the Darwin Museum, the Kurkino River Valley Non-Profit Partnership, and Moscow schools ## 520, 940, 34 and 173 have already planned to use the new teaching methods in their work in August-September.
They will use the guidelines they have received and the skills they have acquired during training in their work with children: during excursions, while setting up environmental trials, at workshops and ecology lessons, and in the work of natural sciences groups.

Master Class Curricula

Master Class # 1. June 20 (10:00 am – 17:00 pm)
Subject: “The Study of Nature as a Creative and Joyful Process”
Experience in introducing an integrated inter-disciplinary emotional and patriotic child development program (for ages 5-15) (ethno-nature therapy)”.
Facilitator: Dr. Shpotova, Director of the Environmental Education Center, Obninsk

Plan of Master Class “The Study of Nature as a Creative and Joyful Process”
Facilitator: Tatiana Shpotova
Organization: Environmental Education Center, Obninsk

Communicative games and a demonstration of all lessons.

Description of how to develop integrated curricula. An example of the “Home” Integrated Curriculum intended for elementary and middle school students.

Types of activities included in the “Home” Curricula: painting, modeling, reading fairy tales, stage movements, stage speech, staging a play, an ecology program, abstract writing, fairy tale festival, and a conference.

Demonstration of children’s modeling and painting works.
Reading fairy tales, Reading Diary, staging a fairy tale.
Separate ecology lessons.
Demonstration of abstracts written by children.

This program is intended for elementary and middle school students during summer vacation (at schools, in children’s homes, rehabilitation centers, and summer camps). The children will be trained in a variety of activities (games, modeling in clay, painting, theater, etc.) within the framework of an integrated curriculum that links all these activities with one another.

 
Master Class # 2. June 27 (10:00 am – 17:00 pm)
Subject: Friends of Parks, a children’s movement – involving the youth in environmental work in the green zones of Moscow and in promoting the need to preserve wildlife within the limits of the city.
Facilitators: E. Knizhnikova, Coordinator of the Moscow Program of the Zapovedniki Environmental Education Center and Y. Sevruk, Coordinator of the Moscow Program of the Zapovedniki Environmental Education Center.

Master Class Plan: “Friends of Protected Islands”, a children’s movement – involving the youth in environmental work at the capital’s specially protected areas and other green areas, and promoting the need to preserve wildlife within and beyond the limits of the city.

Facilitators: E. Knizhnikova, Coordinator of the Moscow Program of the Zapovedniki Environmental Education Center and Y. Sevruk, Coordinator of the Moscow Program of the Zapovedniki Environmental Education Center.

Acquaintance
Computer presentation “Friends of Protected Islands”
How to organize a children’s movement (facilitator’s narrative)
Forming an initiative group
Planning the wok of a Friends of SPNA Group
Work with Moscow SPNAs
Using the “The World of Protected Nature” training module in the Program
Work with Moscow SPNAs (analysis of the experience of the master class attendees; and experience sharing)
Possible types of cooperation with SPNAs: organizing summer city environmental camps; conducting sociological surveys at SPNAs; environmental activities; staging environmental plays; media relations; (facilitator’s narrative)
Master class attendees design mini projects.
organizing summer city environmental camps
sociological surveys at SPNAs
environmental activities
staging environmental plays
media relations
The attendees may propose their own subjects for a mini projects
Attendees present their mini projects
Concluding words of the facilitator

Master Class # 3 June 28 (10:00 am – 17:00 pm)

Subject:  “Environmental Commonwealth” – using the Web for involving children and youth into the national conservation movement.
Facilitators: Dr.Rykhlikova, Senior Researcher at the Moscow State University Institute of Environmental Soil Sciences; A.Lyandsberg, Head of the Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Biological Monitoring at the St.Petersburg Youth Creative Center; and I.Martynenko, Researcher at the Moscow State University Soil Sciences Department.

Plan of Master Class “Environmental Commonwealth” – using the Web for involving children and youth into the national conservation movement.

  1. Telecommunications project “Environmental Commonwealth” – Web space for environmental education, communication, and joint conservation activities of Russian educational institutions and organizations.

Facilitator: Dr. Rykhlikova, Senior Researchers at the Moscow State University Institute of Environmental Soil Sciences.

  1. Water – one of the key components of the human environment.
    1. Water quality control at Moscow natural water bodies and water supply networks.

Participation of children’s environmental groups in water quality monitoring: activities of non-professionals and the search for customers and partners. The role of monitoring research in the school educational process.

    1.  “A Sip of Life” Program: practical conservation activities carried out by children and youth at water bodies. Planning and implementing mini projects for schoolchildren devoted to the study and preservation of water bodies (“A Sip of Life” Program organized with support from the ROLL 2000 Program is being successfully carried out on a national scale since 2001).

Facilitator: A.Lyandsberg, Head of the Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Biological Monitoring at the St.Petersburg Youth Creative Center and Coordinator of the hydrobiology component of the Environmental Commonwealth Project.

  1. Environmental soil sciences for schoolchildren. The soil of Moscow. The basic types of anthropogenic impacts and soil depletion. Involving schoolchildren into soil protection activities in the city: possible options of organizing field and laboratory studies and project activities.

Facilitator: I.Martynenko, Researcher at the Moscow State University Department of Environmental Soil Sciences.

4.   Summary. Discussion of the master class and proposals of mini projects.

Master Class # 4 June 29 (10:00 am – 17:00 pm)

Subject: “Clean City: With Children and for Children” – experience of environmental groups and the administration of the city of Pushchino; and “We Are Responsible for Our City” – experience of the Pushchino Youth Center.
Facilitators: Dr. Sapozhnikova, an ecologist, and Dr.Davydenkova, Director of the Youth Center in Pushchino.

Master Class Plan.
Master Class # 4a
“Clean City: With Children and for Children” (experience in forming social partnerships to address local issues).

This master class was devoted to working with elementary and middle school students during summer vacation (at schools, in children’s homes, rehabilitation centers, and summer camps) and during the school year in the area of separate waste collection.
Children are trained using various approaches: games, discussions, workshops, and research and practical activities.
The basic principle is the following: “Teach others what you yourself have learnt”; and older children work with younger children.
Facilitators: G.Sapozhnikova who was assisted by T.Krylova and V.Samkova.
Organizations: Ivolga Center of Extracurricular Activities, Pushchino; School # 3 in Pushchino; and the Russian Academy of Education Institute of Educational Technologies.

  1. Communicative games to bring together the members of a children’s group.

Introduction to the issue of waste management in the form of a dialogue.
“Waste arithmetic”
A team game devoted to the separate waste collection issue
Workshops – searching for solutions (how to dispose of waste and what is the best way to do this).

  1. Practical studies – “Second Life of Waste” – creating dolls from old and new scraps of material.

Goal: No waste – a myth or reality?
Workshops – searching for new solutions.

  1. A presentation devoted to working with children on the subject of separate waste collection in Pushchino.

Handing out guidelines for teachers entitled “Waste Management Techniques”.

Master Class # 4 b
“We Are Responsible for Our City” (experience of the Pushchino Youth Center)

This master class was devoted to involving high school students into socially useful activities in the city during which they helped save heat in buildings, improved city areas, and restored an environmental trail.
Facilitators: S.Davydenkova who was assisted by G.Makhortykh and A.Lukyanov.
Organizations: Pushchino Youth Center, Solnyshko Social Rehabilitation Center, and Pushchino Youth Council.

  1. Presentation of the Center’s key areas of activity.

Youth employment

  1. organizing carton waste collection at the research institutes of Pushchino
  2. activities under the project “We Are Responsible for Everything”
  3. helping to save heat in buildings and apartments.

2. Presentation on the methods of organizing the free time of adolescents within the framework of the ROLL Program project.