Exemplary
Classroom
Resources

• How do I use this website?
• How do I use the results?
• Bilingual Website
• Curriculum Matches
• Interdisciplinary Learning
• Subject Areas

How do I use this website?

Begin your search on the main page. You have several options for refining your search. In the "Getting Started" box on the right-hand side of the screen, you can start by selecting your jurisdiction (province or territory), grade level (k-12), subject or sustainability theme/issue.

Next, press the "Search" button.

To refine your search on the results page:

• You may add or change grade levels by checking the appropriate boxes in the right-hand menu
• You may limit your search to resources appropriate to your subject area(s) of interest by checking the appropriate boxes in the right-hand menu.
• You may limit your results to resources pertinent to your desired sustainability theme(s) by checking the appropriate boxes in the right-hand menu. You may further refine your search by clicking on a theme and selecting one of the issues that appears in the drop-down menu.

How do I use the results?

Each search will produce a list of teaching resources related to the grade level, jurisdiction, sustainability topic, and/or subject area you selected. Recommended resources appear higher on the list than resources recommended with qualifications. Generally, resources that are easier to link to the curriculum appear before those which present more challenging matches.

For each resource, the title and a brief description of the resource are provided. Clicking on the resource title will bring you to the resource summary page, where you will find:

• A brief description of the resource and a summary of its strengths and weaknesses;
• A few ideas on how to enhance the resource;
• A list of the sustainability themes addressed; and
• Relevant curriculum matches.

Once you have identified a resource you would like to use, clicking on the red "Download Here" button will bring you directly to the resource (if available electronically) or to the online ordering page (if only available in hard copy).

All resources in the Resources for Rethinking database have been comprehensively reviewed. Clicking on "Read the Full Review" will bring you to a page detailing:

• A brief description of the resource and a summary of its strengths and weaknesses;
• An evaluation of the resource’s adherence to the principles of Education for Sustainable Development;
• An assessment of the resource’s pedagogical approaches; and
• Matches to courses and subjects for K-12 curricula in all 13 Canadian jurisdictions.

Bilingual Website

All the main pages on www.resources4rethinking.ca are available in both English and French. Individual records in the database (i.e. specific resource reviews), however, are available only in French or English, depending on the language of the resource.

Curriculum Matches

The Resources for Rethinking database links sustainability education resources to specific courses, units, and objectives of the K-12 curricula in every province and territory in Canada.

Curriculum matches are classified as full or partial.

• Full Curriculum Match: The resource or lesson plan explicitly relates to a given course unit or objective. For example, an easy match to a Grade 10 English unit on debating is made when a debate is not only held, but also explained.
• Partial Curriculum Match: Adaptations, revisions, or supplementations by the teacher are required in order to fulfill a curriculum unit or objective.

The Relevant Curriculum Matches tool, at the bottom of each resources review page, allows teachers to quickly identify how a resource relates to the subject(s) they teach. Simply select a jurisdiction, grade, and subject, and a list of relevant curriculum matches will drop down.

Interdisciplinary Learning

Interdisciplinary learning is fundamental to sustainability education. For example, the study of wetlands may be approached through a collaborative effort by English, Social Studies, and Math teachers. Students may write a creative piece inspired by a visit to a nearby wetland during their English class, analyze how human land use strategies impact wetlands during Social Studies, and then apply statistical methods to biodiversity sampling during their Math class.

The Relevant Curriculum Matches tool is designed to help teachers facilitate interdisciplinary learning in their schools.

• Select your favourite resource(s)
• Using the Relevant Curriculum Matches tool, identify which other area(s) of the curriculum your favourite resources are linked to.
• Contact teachers in the other department(s) and propose team-teaching a unit on the sustainability theme or issue at hand.
• 
  

Subject Areas

Sustainability education requires thinking that transcends traditional academic disciplines. For this reason, we have attempted to include the widest variety of courses possible in the Resources for Rethinking database.

To simplify and streamline searching, we have sorted courses into 14 subject areas:

• Aboriginal Studies (First Nations Studies, Indigenous Peoples Studies, etc.)

• Arts (Dance, Drama, Music, Visual Arts, etc.)

• Business & Commerce (Accounting, Business Studies, Economics, etc.)

• Cooperative & Vocational Education (Welding, Cosmetology, Forestry, etc.)

• English (English, Communications, Journalism, ESL, etc.)

• Family Studies (Child Studies, Family Studies, Home Economics, etc.)

• Food & Agriculture (Agriculture, Cooking, Food Studies, Food Science, etc.)

• French (Core French, Basic French, French Immersion, Français Langue Maternelle, etc.)

• Health, Personal Development & Careers (Health & Wellness, Career & Life Management, Nutrition, Personal Planning, etc.)

• Math (Math, Statistics, Calculus, etc.)

• Physical Education

• Science (Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Geology, Physical Geography, Physics, etc.)

• Social Studies (Civic Studies, Economics, Environmental Studies, Ethics, Geography, History, Law, Media Studies, Philosophy, Religious Education, World Issues, etc.)

• Technology (Computer Engineering, Drafting & Design, Mechanics, Technical & Professional Communications, Technology Education, etc.)

The database automatically searches all the courses that fall within the subject area(s) you select. Teachers can identify curriculum matches between the resource and the specific subject and course objectives they teach using the Relevant Curriculum Matches Tool on the resource review page.