- Zinn Education Project

Earth and the American Dream

Film. By Bill Couturie. 1993. 90 minutes.
U.S. history from the standpoint of the earth.

Rachel Carson: Preserving a Sense of Wonder

Book — Non-fiction. By Thomas Locker and Joseph Bruchac. 2009. 32 pages.
The life of environmental activist Rachel Carson for upper elementary.

Book — Historical fiction. By Jeannine Atkins. Illustrated by Venantius J. Pinto. 2000. 32 pages.
Based on an event that took place in India in the 1970s, children and women in the village hug the trees to save them from being logged.

The Story of Stuff Project

Film. By Annie Leonard. 2009. 21 minutes.
Series of short films on environmental and economic issues that make complicated issues easy to understand for middle school to adult viewers.

The Story of Bottled Water

Film. By Annie Leonard. 2010. 7 minutes.
A viewer-friendly, informative, animated critique of the bottled water industry.

On Coal River

Film. Directed by Francine Cavanaugh and Adams Wood. 2010. 81 minutes.
This film takes viewers on a gripping emotional journey into a community surrounded by a looming toxic threat.

Coal Mountain Elementary

Book — Non-fiction. By Mark Nowak. 2009. 190 pages.
An expose of the coal industry using a combination of poetry, images, first person testimonies, and newspaper accounts.

Ninth Ward

Book — Historical fiction. By Jewell Parker Rhodes. 2010. 224 pages.
Historical fiction for grades 6-12 about the devastation when the levees broke in New Orleans and how people drew on their wits, community, and history to survive.

Heroes of the Environment: True Stories of People Who Are Helping to Protect Our Planet

Book — Non-fiction. By Harriet Rohmer. 2009. 109 pages.
Presents the true stories of 12 people across North America who are challenging environmental devastation. Written for middle school readers.

Dirty Business: “Clean Coal” and the Battle for Our Energy Future

Film. Produced by Peter Bull, Justin Weinstein, Alex Gibney. 2010. 88 minutes.
A feature documentary that addresses the questions: Can coal be made clean? Can renewables and efficiency happen on a scale large enough to replace coal?

‘Don’t Take Our Voices Away’: A Role Play on the Indigenous Peoples’ Global Summit on Climate Change

Teaching Activity. By Julie Treick O’Neill and Tim Swinehart. Rethinking Schools. 16 pages.
A role play on the Indigenous Peoples' Global Summit on Climate Change asks students to develop a list of demands to present to the rest of the world at a climate change meeting.

Teaching Activity by Tim Swinehart

After the Levees Broke: Bearing Witness Through Poetry

Teaching Activity. By Renée Watson. Rethinking Schools. 7 pages.
A teacher's reflection on the power of poetry to spark critical discussion and reflection on current issues of inequality surrounding disaster response in the United States.

Reckoning at Eagle Creek: The Secret Legacy of Coal in the Heartland

Book — Non-fiction. By Jeff Biggers. 2014 (2nd edition). 328 pages.
The untold history of coal mining in the U.S. through the lens of race, labor, and the environment.

Teaching Activity by Jeff Biggers

350.org

Website. Building a global grassroots movement to solve the climate crisis by pushing for policies that will put the world on track to get to 350 ppm of CO2 in the atmosphere.

Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet

Book — Non-fiction. By Bill McKibben. 2011. 288 pages.
A guide to living on and healing a fundamentally altered planet.

Teaching Activity by Bill McKibben

Dirty Oil and Shovel-Ready Jobs: A Role Play on Tar Sands and the Keystone XL Pipeline

Teaching Activity. By Abby Mac Phail. Rethinking Schools. 17 pages.
A lesson on the Keystone XL Pipeline battle.

Scholastic Inc. — Pushing Coal: A 4th-grade Curriculum Lies through Omission

Article. By Bill Bigelow. Rethinking Schools, Summer 2011.
Rethinking Schools exposes links between Scholastic and the coal industry.

Teaching Activity by Bill Bigelow

Diane Wilson

Profile. Diane Wilson (born 1948) is a shrimp fisher, environmentalist, and activist.

Bridge the Gulf

Website. A citizen journalism and new-media initiative for Gulf Coast communities to convey their stories and their visions.

Gasland

Film. Directed by Josh Fox. 2010. 107 minutes.
When filmmaker Josh Fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he crosses the country and uncovers a trail of contamination.

Mystery of the Three Scary Numbers: A Climate Change Teaching Activity

Teaching Activity. By Bill Bigelow. Rethinking Schools. 13 pages.
Through encountering "clues," students probe the dangerous link between fossil fuels, carbon, and climate change.

Teaching Activity by Bill Bigelow

Same Sun Here

Book — Fiction. By Silas House and Neela Vaswani. 2013. 304 pages.
Two 12-year old pen pals find commonalities in issues of the environment, immigration, employment, and overall human rights.

Come Hell or High Water: The Battle for Turkey Creek

Film. By Leah Mahan. 2013. 60 minutes.
Documentary about the impact of “development” on a historically African American community in Gulfport, Mississippi.

A People’s Curriculum for the Earth: Teaching Climate Change and the Environmental Crisis

Teaching Guide. Edited by Bill Bigelow and Tim Swinehart. Rethinking Schools. 2014. 400 pages.
Articles, student readings, and teaching activities to understand environmental problems and imagine solutions.

Teaching Activity by Tim Swinehart

Paradise Lost: Introducing Students to Climate Change Through Story

Teaching Activity. By Brady Bennon. Rethinking Schools. 7 pages.
A high school humanities teacher introduces students to the human cost of climate change, building empathy for climate change refugees like those in the island nation of Kiribati.