How can we raise children's ecological awareness?

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At a time when global warming and the impact of human activity on the planet are no longer questionable, developing children's ecological awareness from an early age is a priority. At Esclaibes International Schools, raising children's awareness of sustainable development issues is an integral part of our educational project. Through educational initiatives such as educational gardens, thematic workshops during the vacations and active participation in the Éco-École program, our schools provide concrete support to help students adopt behaviors that respect nature and biodiversity.

Discover how, through these varied and positive projects, we help every child become an enlightened and committed player for a sustainable future.
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What is ecological awareness in children?

Ecological awareness can be defined as a progressive awareness of the close links between each individual and his or her environment. For children, this means understanding that our behavior has a direct impact on the natural world around us:

• preserve natural resources;
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• protect ecosystems;
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• act with respect towards living things.

Developing ecological awareness from childhood means enabling every child to integrate these essential issues into his or her daily life habits.
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Why raise children's awareness from an early age?

From their earliest years, children build their understanding of the world through everyday experiences. It's a time when they develop their natural empathy for living beings, discover the diversity of life and learn to respect their environment. The earlier they become aware of these issues, the longer good habits become part of their daily lives. Children then become naturally concerned about preserving the environment, which encourages them to adopt eco-responsible behavior throughout their lives.
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The educational benefits of a multi-sensory, hands-on approach

The best way to give children a real grasp of ecological issues is to offer them a concrete, sensory approach to learning. By directly manipulating the earth during gardening activities, observing plant life cycles or visiting a waste or water treatment center, children learn better because they are actually experiencing and observing the phenomena in question.

This approach is at the heart of the active pedagogy practiced in Esclaibes International Schools. By living these experiences, the child perceives concretely the positive effects of his action on the environment. This strengthens not only their intellectual understanding, but also their emotional commitment and motivation.
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Developing children's ecological awareness: the example of Esclaibes international schools

Gardens in every school: reconnecting children with nature

At Esclaibes International Schools, every school - even those in the heart of the city, as in Paris - has its own educational garden. These school gardens provide an ideal setting for raising pupils' awareness of biodiversity, natural cycles and ecological issues.

By handling soil, planting and caring for plants throughout the year, children develop their sensory understanding of the living world. They discover, for example, how vegetables grow, how the seasons influence planting, and how certain insects are essential to the balance of the ecosystem. In March, the children start to prepare the planters, picking up the last dead leaves. They observe the first buds. They sow the first seeds.

The educational benefits are numerous:

• Sensory development: touch, smell, observe, taste... All sensory experiences promote lasting learning.
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• Concrete understanding of natural cycles: plant a seed, watch it germinate, observe a plant grow, observe biodiversity.
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• Discover nature-related vocabulary: learn new words and concepts in French and English, since bilingual learning is at the heart of the Esclaibes project.

This makes the educational garden an ideal place for lively, joyful learning.

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Holiday Workshops: learning about nature through play

During the school vacations, Esclaibes international schools organize " Holiday Workshops ". During the April vacations, some schools choose a spring or garden theme for these immersion courses to learn English from the age of 3.
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Here are a few concrete examples of the activities on offer:

• Bird and insect watching: equipped with magnifying glasses and observation books, children learn to identify the species present in their immediate environment.
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• Planting seeds and discovering plants: through hands-on experiments, children follow the complete evolution of a plant, from sowing to flowering.
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• Sensory experiments on life cycles: observe, smell, touch plants to better understand how life evolves and transforms through the seasons.
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• Cooperative games: these games develop not only English skills, but also values such as mutual aid and respect for nature. Games and activities around ecological awareness are regularly very conducive to the development of cooperation between children.
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Other activities, such as building insect hotels and bird nesting boxes, or setting up a composter, are also possible.

Holiday Workshops are a fun and practical way to raise children's awareness of environmental issues while improving their English.
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Éco-École program: concrete commitment from students in Marseille

Among Esclaibes International Schools' flagship projects, the one run by the bilingual Montessori International School in Marseille is part of the Éco-École international sustainable development education program. This French version of Eco-Schools, an international program for education in sustainable development (ESD) developed by the Foundation for Environmental Education, is coordinated in France by the Teragir association. The aim is to involve schools in sustainable development.

The project actively involves the entire educational community: children, parents and teachers. This international program mobilizes tens of thousands of schools around the world around concrete, collaborative projects, enabling students to become actors in a more environmentally-friendly future.

Eight themes are available to establishments:

• food ;
• biodiversity ;
• climate ;
• waste ;
• water ;
• energy ;
• health ;
• solidarity.

The international bilingual school in Marseille has chosen the theme of food. It has launched the collective creation of a large recipe book. With the help of their families, each pupil proposes a recipe they particularly like (breakfast, starter, main course, dessert, snack, etc.), detailing the ingredients and preparation stages. This project raises children's awareness of the ecological impact of their food, while encouraging family cooperation and sharing.

In fact, the school is aiming to obtain the Silver label of the Éco-École program, a concrete recognition of the efforts made to raise the ecological awareness of its students.
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Raising awareness of ecology and sustainable development: other activity ideas

Ecology and sustainable development are playing an increasingly important role in school projects. In addition to the outdoor school projects, which encourage children to reconnect with nature, other initiatives are being launched. Teachers are exchanging views on the subject, and some are sounding the alarm. They are alerting the educational community, parents included, to the importance of choosing educational initiatives that are independent of any commercial or industrial interests. They urge that preference be given to those that originate from genuine players committed to the environment.
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The "My Little Planet" game: a fun ecological challenge

The Ma Petite Planète (My Little Planet) game is one of those initiatives that is independent of any lobby and, what's more, mobilizes families, schools (from kindergarten to university) and corporate employees alike. It's the ideal ecological game to make children (and adults!) aware of the small ecological gestures of everyday life.

Through this fun environmental challenge, each individual, family or class commits to taking on concrete, fun challenges to preserve the planet. You can play alone or in teams. It's an opportunity to discover simple, effective actions together, while sharing a friendly, educational moment.
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Concrete national actions: large-scale involvement

The French Ministry of Education also offers a number of educational programs to raise awareness of sustainable development in schools:

• Eco-delegates are ambassadors for biodiversity and key players in the fight against global warming. Each year, an Eco-Delegate Award is presented for the most inspiring and concrete initiatives.
  
  
• European Sustainable Development Week is organized every year to raise awareness among schoolchildren, through educational activities and workshops, of the challenges of preserving natural resources and respecting the planet.
  
  
• Climate Week is a key event dedicated to understanding climate issues. It enables students to explore practical solutions and understand their role as responsible citizens in the face of climate change.
  
  
• World Water Day reminds students of the importance of this precious resource, through a variety of experiments and educational activities.
  
  
• The "écoles fleuries" (flowering schools) competition is designed to reward schools that develop concrete projects around the plant environment and biodiversity. It helps raise awareness of the need to respect nature and beautify pupils' daily environment.

These different initiatives are all opportunities to take concrete action and invite children to become responsible citizens committed to the planet.
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Training tomorrow's eco-citizens, without eco-anxiety

Raising children's awareness of the need to protect the planet from an early age is an essential part of creating environmentally aware, respectful and committed adults. Esclaibes International Schools offers positive, playful experiences that are rooted in everyday life, helping each child to become a responsible citizen, while carefully avoiding eco-anxiety. After all, ecological awareness can raise many existential questions.

Through concrete, joyful and action-oriented projects, our schools cultivate a child's sense of wonder, enthusiasm, curiosity and ecological optimism. Children learn to act naturally to preserve their environment, with the conviction that they can make a real contribution to a more sustainable world.

To find out more about our school projects, follow us on the Esclaibes International Schools Instagram account.