Human-Earth Relations: A Literary Exploaration

by Ted Anderson

Prefatory Statement
Let's face it: the natural world is our life-line; without it we parish. The delicate relationship
between humankind and the natural world certainly has a place in the forefront of
contemporary cultural thought. Accordingly, our students should be frequently engaged in
the consideration of this relationship. From infancy, kids are drawn to and curious about
the natural world. This curiosity should be utilized in our secondary schools. A wealth of
literature exists which can facilitate student encounters with and questions about nature and
the earth-human connection.

This unit will revolve around four broad concepts or themes: interconnectedness, humility,
culture, and activism. The principle "text" will be a diverse collection of short readings,
including short fiction by Ursula LeGuin; poetry by Mary Oliver, Leslie Silko, J.W.
Hackett, and Louise Erdrich; and non-fiction by Aldo Leopold, Thomas Berry, Rachel
Carson, Terry Tempest Williams, Edward Abbey, Henry David Thoreau, Joseph Bruchac,
John Muir, Leslie Silko, Greta Gaard, Jerry Mander, Thich Nhat Hanh, Sigurd Olson,
Arne Naess, Issac Asimov and Frederick Pohl, and Wendell Berry. Through reading this
literature, through discussion, analysis, presentations, and field trips, students will enhance
and develop their ability to navigate the environmental issues of the day and articulate their
own points of view about humanity's relationship to the natural world. Both of these skills
are important tools in the quest for individual empowerment and social justice.
Furthermore, students will gain practice in identifying main ideas and supporting
information, distinguishing fact from opinion, and identifying bias, point of view, and
author's intent. Thus, this unit will work toward fulfilling Minnesota's "Reading Complex
Information" high standard, which requires students to "demonstrate the ability to
comprehend and evaluate complex information in varied nonfiction."

Class Specification
The topic of human-earth relations inevitably engages one in questions of history, culture
and philosophy. As a result, this unit will require some abstract thinking and may work best
for 11th and 12th graders. Some of the concepts and readings are challenging, so steps
should be taken to insure each student's understanding. These steps, some of which are
built into the unit, include reading some selections aloud in class, using visual aids to accent
meaning, and using peer groups to collectively make meaning.

Significant Assumptions
Students have the conceptual and linguistic skills necessary to talk, write, and assert
their opinion about human-earth relations.
Each student has the ability to derive meaning and draw connections from a variety
of readings that engage in cultural analysis.
Literature is a useful vehicle for learning about the world.
Students are responsive to high expectations.
Students learn well in a student-centered, constructivist learning environment.
Students learn best from a balance of whole-class, small-group, and individual
activities.
The ability to make meaning of complex nonfiction is an important skill to develop.

Desired Outcomes

Students will be able to identify and define several environmental concepts (see list below).

Students will be able to identify and synthesize, from several readings, recurring
themes of human-earth relations.
Students will be able to articulate their own perspective on human-earth relations,
particularly the role of humans in the context of the natural world.
Students will demonstrate, via designated exercises, their ability to meet parts A, B,
and C of the Reading Complex Information content standard:

Learning Area: Read, Listen and View
Content Standard: Reading, listening, and viewing complex information
Educational Level: High School
Assessment Task: Reading Complex Information

A student shall demonstrate the ability to comprehend and evaluate complex
information in varied nonfiction by reading, listening, and viewing
varied English language selections containing complex information and,
in these selections:
A. identify main ideas and supporting information;
B. distinguish fact from opinion, fiction from nonfiction, or both;
C. identify bias, point of view, and author's intent.

Possible Whole-Class Activities

Whole-class discussion of readings and/or concepts (see study questions for week 2
readings below under "student resources").
Field trips to state or local park; field trip to local co-op.
Brainstorm local environmental issues.
Choose local environmental issue to "support" through letters, radio spots, or other
means of informing the public. Or, if students cannot come to a consensus on the
issue, simply do an analysis of the issue.
Simulation of a public hearing about an environmental issue (ie-Whether to store
nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain site), in which students play the various "roles."

Possible Small-Group Activities

Discuss, analyze, raise questions and draw conclusions about various readings
(again, see study questions for week 2 below).
Have students choose from among several environmental concepts to research and
present to class (see "Concept Presentation" handout below under "student
resources").

Possible Individual Activities

Selected reading--quietly and aloud.
Teacher-designated writing activities designed to spur reflection on the readings.

Ongoing Activities

Have students keep a reflective journal containing reactions to readings,
comparisons of several readings, definitions of concepts, random thoughts, drafts,
sketches, writing ideas, collected images, song lyrics, cartoons, quotes, and
newspaper clippings (see "guidelines for reflective journal" below under "student
resources").
Work to complete the "Assessment Task" (see "assessment" section below)
Have students write a draft of a brief "personal statement" in the beginning of the
unit. As the unit progresses, allow students time to revise and tinker with these
statements. Ask students to hand in final draft at the end of the unit. (See handout
under "student resources.")

Student Resources
The main resource will be the reading packet entitled, "Ted's Anthology of Environmental
Writings:"

Ted's Anthology of Environmental Writings

Interconnectedness

Excerpt from Chief Seattle's 1854 oration*
Excerpt from "Spring" by Henry David Thoreau from Walden (1854)
"The Sun My Heart" by Thich Nhat Hanh from The Engaged Buddhist Reader
(1996)
"Winter Solstice at the Moab Slough" by Terry Tempest Williams from from the
FieldAn Unspoken Hunger: Stories from the Field (1994)
Excerpt from "Living Interconnections with Animals and Nature" by Greta Gaard
from Ecofeminism: Women, Animals, Nature (1993)
Haikus by J.W. Hackett from Haiku Poetry Volume One (1968)

Humility

"Wilderness" by Aldo Leopold from A Sand County Almanac (1949)
"The Kitten" by Mary Oliver from American Primitive (1978)
"The Time We Climbed Snake Mountain" by Leslie Silko from Storyteller (1981)
"The Great Silences" by Sigurd F. Olson from Reflections from the North Country
(1976)
"What is Deep Ecology?" by Arne Naess from Deep Ecology in the 21st Century
(1995)
"Gaia and Global Warming" by Issac Asimov and Frederik Pohl from The
Environmental Predicament (Carol F. Verburg, ed.) (1995)

Culture

"Indians are Different from Americans" by Jerry Mander from In the Absence of
the Scared: The Failure of Technology and the Survival of the Indian Nations
(1991)
"The Earth Community" by Thomas Berry from The Dream of the Earth (1988)
"The Work of Local Culture" by Wendell Berry from What Are People For?
(1990)
"Landscape, History, and the Pueblo Imagination" by Leslie Silko from Writing
Nature: An Ecological Reader for Writers (1995)
"The Circle is the Way to See" by Joseph Bruchac from The Environmental
Predicament(see above)
"Jacklight" by Louise Erdrich from Harper's Anthology of 20th Century Native
American Poetry (1988)

Activism

Chapters 1 and 2 of Silent Spring by Rachel Carson (1962)
"Polemic: Industrial Tourism and the National Parks" by Edward Abbey from
Desert Solitaire (1968)
"A Wind-Storm in the Forests" by John Muir from Writing Nature (see above)
"May's Lion" by Ursula LeGuin from Writing Nature (see above)

* Note: There are several versions of this speech; whether Chief Seattle is the true author
of the version I've included (the version containing the web-of-life metaphor) is currently
being debated by scholars.

Guidelines for Reflective Journal

The reflective journal will be one of the primary means with which I measure your learning
and progress through the unit. However, it should also be a place of discovery, of
exploration, of risk-taking, of ruminations, of meanderings, of fun! Although you may feel
free to go beyond these, here are some criteria that you need to follow:

1. Include a journal entry for each separate reading. Write three questions before the class
in which we discuss the reading. Leave enough space to go back and answer your own
questions. Also, state any opinions or strong reactions you have to the reading; what strikes
you as interesting? Make at least one clear connection to a previous reading (remember: be
specific; cite particular ideas, quotes, stats, images, etc.)

2. Use the journal to work on your personal statement throughout the unit: jot down notes,
edit, revise, and don't stop until you are satisfied.

3. Write down definitions and reflections on the sixteen "concepts" we discuss in class. Feel
free to quote your classmates. For each concept, try to cite on example from our readings.
This could take the form of a quote, statistic, or paraphrase.

4. Finally, be conscious throughout the day of ways in which the human-earth relationship
affects you. Collect random thoughts, images, lyrics, cartoons, quotes, and newspaper
clippings that touch on any of the ideas we've discussed in class.

Concept Presentations

In pairs, choose one of the following environmental concepts to research and present to the
class during week five of the unit:

web-of-life ecological footprint
environmentalism sustainability
world-view ecofeminism
deep ecology reduce/reuse/recycle
biodiversity zero discharge
organic anthropocentrism
industrialization Gaia Hypothesis
ecocentrism food chain

You are encouraged to use our class readings as sources of information about your
concept. Thus, you should take note, from day one, where your concept comes up in the
readings. Furthermore, you and your partner will each need to find one written source not
found in the class anthology. You may use newspaper or journal articles, essays, memoirs,
information from the Internet, etc. Just be sure you have your piece approved by the
teacher, and be sure the piece could be considered "nonfiction." Class time and guidance
will be provided for this research. Note: Finding these readings is a requirement of the
"Assessment Task," so you'll be "setting free" two birds with one stone!

During week five of the unit, you and your partner will "present" your concept to the rest of
the class. In other words, you'll have the golden opportunity to teach the class! Your
presentation should last approximately 10-15 minutes, during which time you will effectively
and clearly present your findings on the concept. Students should come away from your
presentation will a clear definition of the concept firmly planted in their minds. Remember,
students will be taking notes in their reflective journals as you speak, so be sure to present
information slowly and carefully.

Considerations: Does your presentation have distinct "parts," including an opening and
closing? Lots of students respond well to visual aids; will you include any? Are there any
ways you can get the students actively involved in your presentation?

Your presentations will be evaluated on:

clarity of delivery,
appropriate abundance of information based on the class readings and your own
research,
the extent to which the other students come to understand your concept.

Personal Statements

You'll be starting the first draft of this during the very first class of our human-earth relations
unit. The purpose is to voice your beliefs about the value of nature and humanity's "role" in
relation to the earth. Why bother protecting the earth? What's the big deal about
wilderness? Is the earth a "resource" or a "mother"? How should we humans live on the
earth? You can think of this as a kind of one page "manifesto."

As we read about and discuss various environmental issues, you will be asked to revise
your statement. You will continue to tinker with it until you feel it represents a full and
accurate statement of your beliefs about human-earth relations.

Use our class readings as models for your own writing. Note the language these authors
use. Note their varied styles of delivery, from gentle reflection to embittered demands.
Choose a style that seems natural to you. Here are two brief examples to get you going:

"The time has now come. . . when we will listen or we will die. The time has come to lower our voices, to
cease imposing our mechanistic patterns on the biological processes of the earth, to resist the impulse
to control, to command, to force, to oppress, and to begin quite humbly to follow the guidance of the
larger community on which all life depends. Our fulfillment is not in our isolated human grandeur, but
in our intimacy with the larger earth community, for this is also the larger dimension of our being. Our
human destiny is integral with the destiny of the earth."
~ Thomas Berry

"From [the Minnesota Wilderness] I have seen the immensity of space and glimpsed at times the
grandeur of creation. There I have sensed the span of uncounted centuries and looked down the path
all life has come. I have exploredon this rocky bit of shore the great concept that nothing stands alone
and everything, no matter how small, is a part of a greater whole."
~ Sigurd F. Olson

You will be evaluated on the dedicated completion of three drafts. Also, if you propose
another creative means of expressing your personal statement (ie-a song, a one act play, a
recording, a video, etc.), the could be an option.

Discussion Questions: Week Two (Humility)

"Wilderness" by Aldo Leopold
1. Leopold seems concerned about what he calls "lost values." What are these? Do you
share any of these concerns? Are any of them unfounded in your view?

2. Reexamine Leopold's 1949 perspective on the Minnesota/Canadian border wilderness
area. Based on what you've heard, do the issues cited by Leopold still exist? Explain.

3. Have you ever camped, fished, or hunted? Do you think wilderness should be preserved
to save what Leopold calls these "primitive arts"? (See page 195)

4. Based on this essay, can you explain Leopold's belief that the health of the wilderness
and the health of humans are connected? How does this belief tie into the theme of
"humility"?

Poems by Mary Oliver and Leslie Silko
1. How would you characterize the narrators' attitudes toward the animals in the poems?
What feelings do you have toward each animal?

2. In the Oliver poem, what two options does the narrator give herself for disposing the
dead kitten? Are these symbolic in any way? Which would you choose? Explain.

3. In Silko's poem, can the snake be considered symbolic? Explain.

4. How, specifically, does each poem express "humility"?

"The Great Silences" by Sigurd F. Olson
1. How does Olson characterize the "great silences"? What value does he assign them?

2. Can you recall the last time you experienced true silence? Describe it.

3. At the bottom of page 40, Olson makes a plea for the way we should manage
wilderness areas. Do you agree? How does this belief relate to"humility"?

"What is Deep Ecology"? By Arne Naess
1. In your own words, define "Deep Ecology."

2. Look at the list of criteria. With which do you disagree? Explain.

3. Is Deep Ecology guided, in any way, by "humility"?

"Gaia and Global Warming" by Asimov and Pohl
1. To someone who's never heard of it, explain the "Gaia Hypothesis."

2. In what ways, does Lovelock suggest, is the earth "homeostatic"?

3. What are the authors' attitudes toward Global Warming? Do you feel differently?

4. In your opinion, does the concept of Gaia have any social value anything to teach us?
How does Gaia tie into "humility"?

Unit Take-Home Exam

Please write a clear and thoughtful essay (350-500 words) in response to one of the
following:

A. We've talked a great deal about "humility." How does this complex human emotion fit
into a discussion of human-earth relations? In your view, what sort of role will humility have
in our future relations with the earth? Be sure to offer your own definition of humility, and
be sure to refer to at least three of the readings from Ted's Anthology.

B. Many of the writers we've looked at tend to see in America a dichotomy, a distinction
between Native American, land-based culture and European American, technological
culture. How has this distinction played out in American history. In what ways is this
"tension" still part of today's society? Use at least three sources from Ted's Anthology.

C. Clearly, the tension between environmentalism and material "progress" is and will be
prominent in our society. From the perspective of an environmentalist, make a detailed plan
that would guide our society toward a healthier relationship with the natural world. Use at
least threesources from Ted's Anthology.

Have fun with this! Talk to people about it.

Unit Launch

Lesson Plan: Unit Launch (Week 1, Day 1)

Objectives:

Through viewing, listening, writing, and discussion, students will analyze ways in
which humans are dependent on the natural world.
Students will synthesize what they've learned in the form of the 1st draft of a
personal statement about the value of the natural world.

Procedure:
1. Instructor will present slides of wilderness and development images, while the students
listen to Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush." Discuss thoughts, emotions. (10 minutes)

2. Students will free-write about three "sacred" places in their lives. Share, discuss, make
connections to the natural world. (10 minutes)

3. In groups, students discuss a recent meal they've had, tracing its origins--including
packaging--backward. Discuss as class the role and effects upon the natural world. (10
minutes)

4. Teacher presents several examples of statements about the natural world, pointing out
the personal and social connections; students work on first draft of their own "personal
statements." See "Personal Statements" handout above under "student resources." (15
minutes)

5. Share drafts. If time remains, "pre-read" next day's reading by having class brainstorm a
definition of "interconnectedness" and introducing, briefly, Chief Seattle and Thoreau. (15
minutes)

Instructional Materials:
Slide projector, boom box, examples of "statements."

Evaluation:
Students will have met objectives if: they actively engage in discussion; they produce a draft
that reflects thinking about the natural world on both a personal and social level.

Homework:
Read first two selections in anthology (Thoreau and Seattle); bring journal with three
questions about each reading.

Organization
Week 1--Interconnectedness

Students will begin drafts of their "personal statements" about the value of the natural
world. Students will read first section of readings from the anthology. Students will be
asked to reflect upon readings in their journals. Numerous whole-class and small-group
discussions will take place. The goal of the week will be to help students understand the
interdependence among life forms within an ecosystem, between humans and nature, and
between physical and psychological health. Students will be placed in pairs and asked to
select a concept for the "concept presentations" (see handout above under "student
resources"). Students will begin accumulating environmental-oriented information and
objects that they encounter in their daily lives. Students will be introduced to the
"Assessment Task" portion of the unit.

Week 2--Humility

Students will read next section of readings from the anthology and engage in discussion,
small-group work, and journal reflection (please see "discussion questions--week 2" above
under "student resources"). Students should come to an understanding about the role of
"humility" in human-earth relations and the environmental struggle. Students will meet in
their "concept groups" to begin discussing research strategies. Field trip #1 to natural
environment. Students will continue working on their reflective journals and Assessment
Task.

Week 3--Culture

Students will read, discuss, reflect upon next section of readings. Students should gain an
understanding of the cultural tensions that played a role in the colonization of America.
Students will met in their "concept groups." Students will continue working on their
reflective journals and Assessment Task.

Week 4--Activism

Students will read, discuss, reflect upon next section of readings. Students should gain an
understanding of different levels of environmental "activism" and several strategies
proposed by environmentalists. Contemporary environmental conflicts will be examined.
Students will meet in "concept groups." Concept presentations will begin. Field trip #2 to
co-op. Public hearing simulation. Students will continue working on their reflective journals
and Assessment Task. Students will spend time revising personal statements.

Week 5--Conclusion

Finish concept presentations. Turn in completed journals. Work on take-home final.

Lesson Plans:

Lesson Plan: The Web of Life (Week 1, Day 2)

Objectives:

Students will understand the concept of interconnectedness as a characterization of
the natural world and human-earth relations.
In small groups, students will discuss and draw conclusions about the similarities
between excerpts from Thoreau and Chief Seattle.

Procedure:
1. The Web-of-Life (I witnessed this in one of my classes this summer): Students will form
a circle. Each student will be given a card denoting a natural object or animal. A long string
will be held by each person, forming a "web" or something resembling the spokes of a
wheel. Each student will hold the web in one hand and the card in the other. One student
will begin by stating the importance of their object or animal and making some sort of
connection to another. That student will follow suit, and so on, until all students have made
a "connection." Then, one student will let go of the web; others will note how that feels.
More students will let go of the web until it falls. (15 minutes)

2. Discuss reactions to the web demonstration. (5 minutes)

3. In groups of four, students will discuss the two readings. First, students will share their
prepared questions with each other. Then, students will discuss similarities between the
pieces. (15 minutes)

4. Each group shares their findings with the class. Class discusses implications of
interconnectedness. (10 minutes)

5. Teacher introduces next day's reading. (5 minutes)

Instructional Materials:
String, note cards, Ted's Anthology of Environmental Writings

Evaluation:
Students will have met the objectives if: their discussion and future writing suggests an
understanding of the concept of interconnectedness; they are able to make connections
between the Thoreau and Seattle pieces.

Homework:
Read Thich Nhat Hanh's "The Sun My Heart." Write three questions about the reading. In
your journal, list five specific ways in which the web-of-life metaphor fits into your life.

Lesson Plan: Differing World-Views (Week 3, Day 1)

Objectives:

Students will develop their historical perspective of the dramatic changes that took
place with the coming of European/American culture to the North American
continent, including changes in settlement patterns, changes in the physical
landscape, and changed human relations to the natural world.
Students will gain an understanding of the cultural bias imbedded the week's
readings.

Procedure:
1. Students will get into small groups. Students will be asked to visualize what America was
like at the time of "discovery." Students will share these images with group members. (5
minutes)

2. Teacher will present maps of American Indian tribal lands, one from 1492, one from the
mid 1960s (see attachment). Groups will begin a list of cultural differences in their journals,
making note of land usage based on maps. (15 minutes)

3. Teacher reads excerpt from Leslie Silko's Ceremony (see attachment). Groups note in
their journals the characteristics of the "witchery," making connections to today's world.
(10 minutes)

4. Groups discuss the day's reading, Jerry Mander's "table of inherent differences." Each
group chooses one thing that surprised them and one question or objection to present to
the class. (10 minutes)

5. Whole-class discussion. (10 minutes)

6. With the time remaining, "pre-read" Thomas Berry piece by posing the following
question: Consider the ways you interact with the earth, both directly and indirectly; how
are these different than they would have been 200 years ago?

Instructional Materials:
Overhead projector, Ted's Anthology of Environmental Writings

Evaluation:
Student will have met the objective if: they are actively engaged in discussion; their journal
entries and take-home final reflect analysis of how cultural differences between Native and
Euro-American peoples impacted our environment.

Homework:
Write a short journal entry in which you reflect on changes in a local landscape over 100
years. Read Thomas Berry piece and write three questions.

Assessment

The assessment for the unit may be divided into two parts, each amounting to 50% of the
unit grade, or 50 points. The Assessment Task (see below), since it ties into the graduation
requirement, can be treated as a pass/fail. In other words, to earn these 50 points for the
unit, the student must complete the Assessment Task worksheet. In the spirit of the Profiles
on Learning, students should be given ample time and opportunity to complete this
checklist. The other 50 points of the unit will be based on the rubric below, which assesses
unit projects, such as the personal statement, the journal, and the concept presentation.

The letter grade can follow the traditional numerical format of:
100-90 points = A
89-80 points = B
79-70 points = C
69-60 points = D
59Unit and lower = F

Assessment Rubric:

Did not Meet
Expectations
(0 pts)
Working
toward
expectations
(1 pt)
Met
Expectations (3
pts)
Went beyond
expectations (4
pts)
Star-
spangled
performance (5
pts)
Devoted
completion of
three drafts of
personal
statement





Journal reflects
clearly on
each reading





Journal makes
coherent
connections
between
readings





Journal includes
effective
definitions of
concepts





Journal features
abundant
collection of
enviro-stuff





Mature
participation in
concept
presentations





Concept
presentation
reflected diligent
research





Mature
participation in
field trips





Exam
coherently
synthesizes info
learned
during unit





Exam makes
clear and
useful references
to three
readings

For Assessment Task please click here.