Rocks come from nature, they are a fascinating and impactful way to connect to the natural world - especially when they have rare, naturally occurring imagery and are over a billion years old! In a collaboration with 6th Grade Humanities, Story Through Stone was a part of the Education for Sustainability Curriculums in the 2023-24 school year. Here is a summary of the classroom visits, what was taught, what was learned and opportunities for growth as the curriculums continue next school year.

6th Grade Humanities:

Under the instruction of Jacquie Beutell, 6th grade humanities were learning about the different Earth epochs, the geologic periods of time. By holding and witnessing stone dated to be over a billion years-old, students were able to imagine what our world was like before humans were present. The 6th graders created poems that illustrated, in detail, how they imagined earth life was like before the Anthropocene. 

This lesson addressed the following Big Picture/Enduring Understandings articulated by the Cloud Institute:

"Think 1,000 Years" - by imagining into periods previous to humans, it opens the door to thinking about our future on the earth.

Standards/Targets/Guideposts reached:

1. Cultural Preservation and Transformation: Recognize the value of stories and the arts as links between the past and present and future.

2. The Dynamics of Systems and Change: Be able to step back and see the big picture.

Here is a sample of Student Work from the 6th Grade:

We made a couple of awesome discoveries while teaching this unit. One is that students like reading each other's poem, more than they liked reading their own. This opened up a tremendous experience of support as they offered to read each other's work.

Secondly, we discovered that a Group Poem could be created by each student writing down their favorite line of each classmate's poem. It helped them to deeply listen to each other's work. In the end, an awesome "accidental" poem could be read from the combined work:

This brought all the student imagery together, like the stones themselves all from the same rock, all from the same earth. Which helped to elucidate a third Efs Enduring Understanding/Big Picture: WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER: We are interdependent on each other and on the natural systems. In this context, self interests are best served through mutually beneficial relationships.

Engaging in the creative process of crafting and sharing poems contributes to the development of effective communication skills among students. Expressing thoughts and emotions through poetry becomes a conduit for articulating ideas, a skill invaluable for advocating sustainable practices in the broader context.

With a specific focus on the expressive narratives embedded in rocks, the activity not only fostered a connection to nature but also nurtured an understanding and appreciation of Earth's history. This newfound comprehension becomes a catalyst for a sense of responsibility and care for the environment, seamlessly aligning with the core principles of sustainability.

With a first go-around under our belts, we're excited to bring this unit back to the 6th grade next year. Now that we have discovered some approaches that worked, we plan to expand on them with more intention. Would it be possible to explore another Enduring Understanding, that A HEALTHY AND SUSTAINABLE FUTURE IS POSSIBLE? Discuss: We can learn how to live well within the means of nature. This viewpoint inspires and motivates people to act.

Once students are able to imagine over a billion years into the past, could they then apply this imagining to our future, and how our actions impact that future? Could we possibly broach the conversation that would allow us to Define how their own (or other peoples) actions affect the systems they are in? (DEI Benchmark #28?)