Seattle Girls School, 7th Grade
Seventh grade students at the Seattle Girls School were tasked with identifying a topic or issue that they had a particular passion for, learning about it in depth, and then initiating some specific change in the community around it. Students engaged in an intensive research and writing process that culminated in a five-paragraph essay that described the root causes of the problem they chose. They then developed an action plan to create change, ideally by addressing one or more of the root causes they’d identified and by contacting individuals who represent or work with the communities affected by their issue. Throughout the project the students crafted specific goals with measurable results, and documented their efforts. At a culminating event, they presented their work in the form of an art piece and public service announcement to communicate their message, and a display highlighting specific actions taken and their results.
Through this project, one student became particularly interested in addressing the lack of youth activism around global warming. As part of her action plan she created a website called Youth Speak Up to engage young people around the issue of global warming and to empower them to take action. In addition, she created a global warming lesson plan for other teachers and young people to use in educating other people about this important issue.