Learning to Give, Curriculum Division of The LEAGUE

Students will understand that they have the ability to be philanthropist in their community.  The students will be guided in philanthropic discussions throughout the unit that clearly define philanthropy as the giving of time, talent, and treasure for the common good. Students learn that they can create a beautiful community through cleaning up, helping others, sharing songs, using kind words, creating public art, and much more. 

The purpose of this unit is to promote the idea of the common good.  The concepts of wants, needs, savings and philanthropy are introduced. Money values are reinforced through hands-on activities.

Learners will learn how to become environmental stewards by participating in several service learning activities that help address environmental needs in their school communities. They will gain an understanding of the importance of environmental stewardship and how they can participate. Learners will also understand that they are part of a whole and that they have a responsibility to participate in caring for the Earth.

Focus Questions:
Why does the world need environmental stewards?
What do we have to give for what we have been given?

The learners will understand the importance of giving their time, talent, and treasure to promote our natural resource of trees.  They will participate in a service learning project involving planting new trees and recycling waste paper to make mulch.  The learners will express their understanding and accomplishments in a variety of ways.

How can a learner use his/her time, talent, and treasure to renew our natural resource of trees?

Can a young person truly make a difference in our world?

Students will understand the basic definition of philanthropy as the giving of time, talent and treasure for the common good. Students will also understand that everyone, regardless of age, can be a philanthropist. Students will understand that examples of philanthropy can be found in many areas.

The essential questions:

What is philanthropy?

Why do we have philanthropists?

Is every act done for another philanthropic?

It’s important for learners of all ages to understand that animals are living, feeling beings.  This unit encourages children to think about pets and what they bring to the lives of human beings. They will understand that by providing animals with basic needs and treating animals with kindness and respect, they are demonstrating responsible pet care, Environmental Stewardship and acting as responsible citizens of the community.

Focus Question: 
What is each person’s responsibility for animal welfare?

The purpose of this unit is to introduce the learners to the concept of Environmental Stewardship, community and how making an area attractive is an act of philanthropy.  This will be achieved through looking at the Monarch Butterfly and the four stages of its life cycle. Learners will also discover that the Monarch is dependent on the milkweed plant as a source of energy.

Focus Question: How is caring for the environment, by protecting plants and animals, related to civic responsibility?

This unit emphasizes the importance of reducing, reusing and recycling with a particular focus on the significance of respecting the environment and being good stewards of the Earth.  Using literature and hands-on activities, the concepts of reduce, reuse and recycle will be explored.  The culminating project will include students sharing their time and talent to make new paper from used classroom scrap paper.  The learners will act philanthropically by using the hand made, recycled paper to create cards to give to others in the community.

Focus Questions(s):
Is it the responsibility of everyone to reduce, reuse, and recycle?  How does that demonstrate respect for the Earth?
 

So many of our students see themselves as individuals and have not made connections to "community." Is there strength in uniting? How do children develop a sense of community? In this unit, students will begin to view their family, friends and school as a community where people live, work and play together for the common good. Students will explore game-playing as an activity to build community. As a culminating activity, host a family "Make-It, Take-It Night" where families make games and then are able to take their games home for continued "community building."

The students will learn about the volunteers who help in the school. They will decide a way to show their appreciation to those volunteers and be encouraged to find ways that they can be a volunteer to help others.

 Water is essential to all life; however it is not abundant in many areas. In order to preserve our usable water resources, water conservation needs to be a component of everyday life. Conservation can be done in a variety of ways. Through the completion of this unit, learners will develop an understanding of the water cycle, how to measure rainfall (water) and why it is essential to conserve this precious resource. Learners are able to display their ability to be a good citizen and stewards of the Earth by educating those around them about how these things can be done.

For learners to be good stewards of the Earth they need to know how to help take care of the environment. “What’s All the Commotion in the Ocean?” is a unit to enhance children’s learning about ocean animals, pollution and how children can make a difference by being good stewards of the Earth’s water resources. The children will learn about ocean animals, the ocean environment and how to take care of the ocean environment.  They will develop possible answers to the question: What can we do to help the ocean environment? These discussions will lead to a culminating writing activity. The children will write a letter to an organization to find out how to help clean up our oceans.  While learning about taking care of the ocean environment they will learn that they are acting responsibly for the common good.

Focus Question: What can we do to help the ocean environment?

This unit will introduce the learners to the important mission, as well as the needs of animal shelters, both private and municipal.  Learners will understand that they can contribute to animal welfare by aiding a shelter(s) and educating others about the work of shelters.
Through research and class discussion, the learners will be introduced to Animal Welfare and Animal Shelters. They will examine the different types of shelters. They will also explore some of the reasons that animals are surrendered to shelters, services that shelters provide, some of the jobs that volunteers and others can do to help in shelters and calculate the cost of running a shelter.  Learners will plan and implement a service project to aid a shelter.  They will demonstrate their knowledge about animal shelters by sharing their knowledge with their peers

Focus Question:
Who is responsible for the humane care and welfare of homeless animals? 
 

Through a food-waste survey in the lunchroom, research, observation, and discussion, the learners explore what gets thrown in the lunch trash at school and learn about earth-friendly alternatives that reduce waste in landfills, including recycling and composting. Learners discover the benefits of compost and reasons to promote it in the community. They learn that their knowledge can be shared with others through implementing a student generated and planned service project. 

Focus Question: What can we do to promote responsible use of all resources?

No one wants to think about disasters and evacuation. These are frightening issues for adults, and are especially scary for children. Advanced planning, including preparing for the care of animals, can minimize some of the fright and stress of evacuation.  Preparing for a disaster is the first and best step in helping both people and animals in case of an emergency. Animals are part of our families and we want to make sure that they are safe just like us. (ASPCA®) 

This unit is designed to help learners understand what is needed to be prepared for an emergency.  Through a better understanding of disasters and emergencies, and researching animal welfare needs in the community, the learners will understand the need for emergency preparedness including for animals.  They create a service learning project involving animal welfare and also share their knowledge with their peers. 
Focus Question:
How can I make a difference in the lives of animals and their welfare in our community?
 

Students will study philanthropists and environmentalists through literature and research on environmental issues. Students choose one environmental issue to research such as recycling, landfills, rainforests, acid rain, global warming, water pollution, air pollution and energy. Students’ research and responses to the issues are presented in a culminating puppet play. They will conduct research, write scripts, make puppets from recycled materials and perform plays for others in their community. By performing these puppet shows, students will become environmentalists and philanthropists themselves as they educate and motivate others on these issues. They will be asked to think about the link between philanthropy, their environment and active citizenship.

Focus Questions:

• Do people have a responsibility to care for the environment?
• Are you an environmentalist?
• Are you a philanthropist?
• How is being an environmentalist an act of philanthropy?

This unit is designed to enhance the learners’ knowledge of philanthropy through stewardship of the environment.  They will be introduced to the concept of stewardship and how that relates to taking care of the environment locally Learners will study desert regions around the world by using mapping and research skills to identify those deserts. They will also identify native plant and animal species of deserts. They will explore why it is important to be good stewards of the land both world wide and locally. The learners will demonstrate acts of philanthropy and environmental stewardship by cleaning or beautifying a public or common area around their school or in their community. 
Focus question:  Is it the civic responsibility of everyone to take care of public lands?
 

Students will gain an understanding of habitats, the coexistence of humans and wildlife, and the changes that have evolved over time. They will differentiate between various types of wildlife and explain the importance of protecting and nurturing the environment. They will select a service learning project in which they care for the animals around them.

Essential Questions:

• Can humans and animals coexist in the same habitat?
• If so, are there dangers that exist? For whom?
• What is a community?
• What do humans and wildlife share?
• What is Common Good? Does it include wildlife?

Through the use of creative dramatics and the Internet, students will learn about global warming, its causes, effects, and possible solutions.  In the process they will conduct a “green audit” of their households and complete a project designed to teach others about global warming.

Focus Question:
What is a person’s responsibility for preserving and protecting the global environment?

Watershed S.O.S. concerns gaining knowledge and discovering ways to protect the watershed. This unit includes lessons about the water cycle, how the watershed works, pollutants of the watershed, uses of water and water as a nonrenewable resource. The unit is interdisciplinary with science, English, social studies and philanthropic components.  Scientific experiments and demonstrations are included in the lessons. The unit lends itself to advocacy. Students would educate, take action through the political process by contacting local governmental agencies (DNR, contact state or U.S. Representatives, or write letters to the editor of a local newspaper concerning protecting their watershed. In order to be a good citizen, one must protect their environment and advocate for the protection of their watershed. This unit includes lessons about the importance of water, the watershed, water as a nonrenewable resource and ways that learners can be advocates and protectors of their watershed. The unit is interdisciplinary and has many hands on activities as well as experiments included in the lessons.

This unit introduce students to the term philanthropy through stories and role-playing.  Students will experience philanthropy by packing and distributing goods at their community food pantry or donation center.  Is philanthropy a good thing for all?  

This unit helps the learners understand that animals often work as a team with humans.  The students will learn about some extraordinary working animals and understand each individual’s responsibility to treat animals in a humane way. The students research a specific working animal and create an informational presentation about their findings. Learners will discover the impact that these animals have on the greater good.  The learners will consider the “payment” of humane treatment and respect and kindness due to animals. Students will learn that all animals deserve humane treatment and will determine their responsibility is to assist and support animal welfare.

Students will recognize that even important people in the world do not have unlimited power. Constitutionally, the President of the United States is limited by the “advise and consent” rule, among others. The learners will look at the importance of limiting government and analyze the importance of citizen participation in their communities. How the common good benefits when citizens and students participate in their communities and schools will be identified. The role of nonprofits and foundations will be analyzed. Students will research the local community foundation, raise funds, learn parliamentary procedure, and form a Youth Advisory Committee which will complete grant applications and make recommendations to a Board of Directors for dispensing of the funds.

Learners will research events in American history that led to the development of philanthropy in the United States, analyze the importance of allowing all citizens the opportunity to contribute to the common good, identify needs and resources to set up and maintain a service learning project.

This unit shows learners how electricity is created, used, measured, and conserved. Learners explore energy conservation and energy efficiency using a lab activity about lightbulbs and a research assignment about alternative energy resources. Students plan and carry out a project to advocate for conserving energy and using green technology. They demonstrate to members of the school or local community their learning about renewable resources that promote conservation. The purpose of this unit is to empower learners to advocate for responsible use of energy resources. While this unit is written specifically to address the "greening of New Jersey," it is adaptable to any community.  

Focus Question: What is an individual's responsibility for the environment?

The learners will assess the role of animals in entertainment. The learners will differentiate between animal cruelty and the humane treatment of animals and explore attitudes/beliefs about the role of animals specifically in sports and entertainment. The learners will then identify advocacy as a way to promote the humane treatment of all animals.

Focus Question: 
How should animals be treated and who speaks for their welfare?

Using the themes and content of geography, learners examine and demonstrate knowledge of cultural elements and traditions of selected nations of the world and how they affect philanthropy and stewardship in world regions. Learners will use the five themes of geography to explore the political, geographic, economic and social aspects of continents and identified specific nations. Our learners will also discover newly emerging democracies' struggle with developing non-governmental institutions and organizations. They will gain an appreciation for the worldwide relief efforts as well as grassroots movements. As a service learning project they will develop a visual aid for younger learners for celebrating African-American History Month.

This unit will show students how acts of philanthropy were demonstrated in the field of medicine despite racial discrimination.  Vivien Thomas shared his time and talent to assist Dr. Alfred Blalock in pioneering a surgical clamp.  He worked in the era of segregation in the United States.  Hamilton Naki assisted Dr. Christian Barnard in heart transplantation in South Africa.  They worked within the system of apartheid.  These techniques would not have been implemented without Thomas and Naki.  Both men worked for unequal pay and without recognition, yet continued to work for the common good rather than personal gain.

Focus Questions:

1) How are people able to persevere and display courage in the face of racism, prejudice and discrimination?

2) What causes people to put the needs of society or humanity ahead of their own personal needs?

3) How does society benefit when all people are given equal opportunities to succeed academically and economically? 

These lessons will expose students to a Newberry Award winning novel about the life and trials of an African-American, land-owning family in Mississippi in 1933. The book explores several instances of bigotry, community capital, and the importance of family. Written from the viewpoint of nine-year-old Cassie Logan, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is a powerful novel affecting all who read it. It will allow students to read, listen to, perform and respond to a quality, cross-cultural novel. Students will look at the roots of the southern “caste” system and recognize the importance of hearing all voices in the community.

The purpose of this unit is to assist the learner in developing a deeper understanding of what it means to be an environmental steward and to apply this knowledge, by means of conservation and recycling, to identify environmental misuse of natural resources as found in his/her home, school, and community.

Focus Question: How can I become a steward of our Earth’s natural resources and effect positive change in my home, school, and community?”
 

Learners explore the role rules play in enhancing the common good and identify characteristics of one who plays the ‘game of life’ in a way that promotes the common good. They define the concepts of contract and social contract and make an analogy between civil society and the "game of life" (includes rules, trust, and relationships). Through learning and playing the card game Bridge, students learn and practice life/social skills (problem solving, good character, interpersonal communication, collaboration, and discipline). They also learn valuable study skills of memory, concentration, and critical thinking.
 

In this unit, the learners will explore some common approaches taken to problem-solve.  They will explore how individuals, groups and/or organizations use problem-solving approaches to resolve community issues or needs and promote the common good.  The unit will offer learners opportunities to explore  ways of addressing issues of animal welfare and humane treatment.

Focus Questions:
What do I believe about the welfare and humane treatment of animals, and how can I act on those beliefs in a rational problem solving manner that promotes the common good?

This unit is about learners becoming familiar with the rainforest, the problems that are resulting from deforestation of rainforests, as well as other world environments, and how they can become a part of the solution to this problem. Learners will identify concerns pertaining to the world’s rainforests and be able to locate them throughout the world. They will become  knowledgeable regarding the attributes of a tropical rainforest and working with current statistics, they will understand the repercussions of rainforest destruction and how this destruction may personally affect them if deforestation continues at its present pace.The learners will also identify possibilities for, and commit to, taking action against continued deforestation.

Focus Question: How can I be a steward of the rainforests?
 

Learners will examine and demonstrate knowledge of philanthropy and its impact on society.  They will evaluate the significance of a philanthropic contributions to the common good and discover how they can engage in philanthropic service.  Learners will also collaboratively determine, design, and implement a service project to meet and authentic community need.

Focus question for the unit: Can one person truly make a difference in the world?

This unit will allow the learners to share their knowledge of the ocean’s environment and protecting the animals that inhabit them. It includes lessons about the importance and careful management of these resources and the impact humans have on these environments around the world. To be responsible citizens, people must become advocates for the protection of the environment including the world’s oceans. 

Focus Question: Is it the responsibility of every human being to be an advocate for our natural resources and the habitats of the animals on our planet?
 

The purpose of this unit is to help the learners understand the extent of the problems associated with trash and its disposal, and provide them with ideas for recycling and reusing. 
Focus Question: What we can do to help alleviate trash problems in our community, state/nation?

Air pollution is an international concern, with our learners serving as the next generation of stewards for our precious resource.  At the heart of this unit is inquiry as learners see the connection to their personal health, develop a knowledge base about air quality issues, and role play an authentic scenario to develop solutions for improving air quality in our local and world community. This unit will also serve to encourage an affective response and motivate learners to act upon this new understanding for the common good.

 
Focus Question: What can we do to preserve air quality for present and future generations?

This unit guides learners to gain awareness of the rich history of philanthropy in the United States, develop a working knowledge of the vocabulary associated with philanthropy, and demonstrate active citizen participation through service related to core democratic values.

This unit will help learners become more knowledgeable about the effects of pollution on air quality, while encouraging them to be responsible citizens by becoming stewards of the Earth and clean air. This unit will stimulate awareness of how air quality affects our life.  Learners will develop their advocacy skills while presenting information about air quality and creating Public Service Announcements encouraging others to be good stewards of the Earth by helping clean up the pollutants in the air.

Focus Question: How can each person become involved in action and advocacy to address the issue of air quality?
 

Watershed S.O.S. concerns gaining knowledge and discovering ways to protect the watershed. This unit includes lessons about the water cycle, how the watershed works, pollutants of the watershed, uses of water and water as a nonrenewable resource. The unit is interdisciplinary with science, English, social studies and philanthropic components.  Scientific experiments and demonstrations are included in the lessons. The unit lends itself to advocacy. Students would educate, take action through the political process by contacting local governmental agencies (DNR, contact state or U.S. Representatives, or write letters to the editor of a local newspaper concerning protecting their watershed. In order to be a good citizen, one must protect their environment and advocate for the protection of their watershed. This unit includes lessons about the importance of water, the watershed, water as a nonrenewable resource and ways that learners can be advocates and protectors of their watershed. The unit is interdisciplinary and has many hands on activities as well as experiments included in the lessons.
 

The purpose of this unit is to introduce learners to the regions of the Earth that are considered deserts. They will explore why it is important to be good stewards of the land both world wide and locally. Learners will “adopt” an area around the school or community and take care of that area. The learners will practice stewardship of the land by adopting a public/common area in their community to care for.

Focus question: How are civic responsibility and the care of public lands related?
 

This unit is intended to show learners how electricity is used, measured, recorded, and calculated. Learners will then research energy conservation and energy efficiency using a lab activity and an internet research assignment. Once learners discover a way to use energy more efficiently by changing the types of light bulbs they use in their house, they will create a presentation to give to members of the community. The presentation is designed to provide information to groups about different types of renewable resources that can be use by a city.  The purpose of this unit is to expose learners to different types of energy sources that produce electricity. They will show how electricity is used, measured, recorded and calculated while exploring how basic energy conservation and energy efficiency choices can impact their family energy costs and reduce the amount of energy consumption.This unit will allow the learners to explore local governments and how to develop an action plan for a city to use alternative energy resources.

Focus Question: Who in a community is responsibility for protecting the resources of the community?  Is it the elected officials, the individual or both?
 

In this unit the learners will develop a definition of advocacy. They will become familiar with what motivates people to become advocates as well as identify and evaluate some of the strategies advocates use to promote their cause or the cause of others. They will identify and research local, state, and/or national concerns for humane treatment and animal welfare that call for advocacy intervention and determine what a successful intervention strategy might look like. They will include these strategies in a plan to address their identified local, state, and/or national concern for animal welfare as well as identify ways to encourage others to take up the cause(s). Advocating for the common good is everyone’s responsibility.  Advocacy becomes even more important when those who need or want change cannot speak for themselves – children and animals. This unit focuses on humane treatment and animal welfare to teach advocacy skills.

This unit will provide learning opportunities that allow students to interact with sources and individuals who have knowledge about the effects of air pollution while determining what role each has played.  Additionally, it will allow learners to develop and implement a plan for distributing radon and carbon monoxide detectors to senior citizens and families in need, developing skills for becoming good stewards of the Earth. It will introduce the learners to the idea that Air Quality is an important environmental issue and that they have the power to affect change.
Focus Question: In which ways can you heighten individual and community awareness about the issues posed by the condition of poor air quality?
 

The learners will explore making career choices, including factors that help make a career satisfying, by focusing on careers with animals as examples. They will research various careers with animals and share their findings as a service project with an appropriate student-selected audience(s). They will demonstrate their new knowledge and experience by reflecting and writing an evaluative response about their knowledge of career choices and the impact of their service.

Focus Question:
What factors might influence a person’s career choice, and their satisfaction in a chosen career?

Learners make those critical connections between primary sources and textual materials or secondary sources. The lessons and instructional sequence involve learners identifying philanthropic activities within their own community and state during the period of World War II. Stretching to their community today, they discover the role of ongoing philanthropic institutions and grassroots actions. Two engaging service-learning lessons give cohesive meaning to philanthropy in their community and state.

This unit is about the impact of growth (commercial and residential) on the environment and how everyone needs to be aware of the trade-offs. Specifically, this unit will examine how the use of impervious surfaces impacts the environment. The unit will also illustrate how knowledge of science informs our decisions and awareness as citizens. The lessons evolve from engaging the learner’s interest, becoming aware of the issue in their community and taking action in their community for the common good.Population density and community development has political and environmental implications. The development of cities, towns, suburbs and rural America share a common feature; a transportation system that relies on cars and trucks and the highways, roadways and parking lots that they demand. As towns and suburbs grow, the commercial and residential building “footprint” on the landscape will be harmful to the environment unless carefully planned. The issue related to “sprawl”, “population density” and the environment is the use of concrete, brick and asphalt; all impervious surfaces. The purpose of this lesson is to make learners aware of the environmental impact of impervious surfaces and empower them to become environmental stewards.

Focus Questions:
What is the relationship between community development and the environment?
How has development negatively impacted my community and what can be done about it?
 

This unit sets the stage for an introduction to the three economic sectors: "profit," "nonprofit" and "government." The students learn what makes an organization fit into its appropriate category. Taking that information, they apply it to researching environmental groups within the three categories. Students must decide into which sector they fall and why. The students then take their knowledge of nonprofit organizations and apply that information to the research of nonprofit environmental organizations. The historical focus of this unit is the 1960's and the students are introduced to the factors that led to the creation of the environmental movement and environmental stewardship.  The unit has a strong economic focus as well that allows student to interpret data about environmental nonprofit organizations investigated. This information is used as students decide how to invest their time and money in a nonprofit environmental organization. The students must also identify why they would support an environmental group of their choosing thereby making key economic decisions about their own spending and time.

Learners will describe what constitutes good nutritional practices, compare their own eating patterns to these practices and encourage others to improve their own eating habits. They will determine the value of acting on behalf of others and decide if their actions can make a difference in the school. Learners will investigate the difference between hunger and malnutrition, analyze hunger in the community and research local groups that aid the hungry. They will compare the depiction of hunger in world literature and describe causes of hunger in the world. Learners will distinguish between the many different approaches to hunger in the United States and abroad by looking at governmental versus nonprofit programs. They will reflect on the importance of philanthropic actions in solving the problems of hunger in the world.

This unit will introduce the learners to the manner in which marginalized, disenfranchised and disadvantaged individuals have used the nonprofit sector as an alternative power structure in American society. They will research various local and national organizations, events, and leaders involved with creating positive change for the common good. They will conduct a community survey involving women and minority groups and discover the problems they faced and continue to face. They will report their findings in the school and/or community newspaper. They will create bookmarks about local women and minorities to be given to other schools and the local library to distribute to community members.

As an extension, they will write essays on why the community feels as it does, and agree or disagree with the community's views. After learning about the various nonprofit organizations associated with marginalized, disenfranchised or disadvanaged individuals and/or groups, learners can choose to volunteer their time, talent, and/or treasure to these organizations.

The purpose of this unit is to assist the learner in developing a deeper understanding of what it means to be a steward of the environment and to apply this knowledge to identified environmental problems as they relate to landscaping and gardening. 

Focus Question: “How can I, as one person, become a steward of my environment and affect positive change?”
 

The purpose of this unit is for students to understand how both small and large scale acts of philanthropy are necessary for urban renewal, especially in war-torn countries.  They will do this through history lessons, mathematical data analysis, and finally an opportunity to make their own contributions to urban renewal in their communities.

Focus Question: In order for a society to recover from war, must citizens, governments, and organizations perform actions or services devoted to the common good, and if so, how?

Learners will explore the essential question "What is a Philanthropist?" and use what they’ve learned to not only become philanthropists themselves, but to highlight philanthropists in their community by writing a newspaper article to be published in a local, school or class paper.

The purpose of this unit is to raise awareness about the impact of growth (commercial and residential) on the environment, specifically, how impervious surfaces impact the environment. The lessons evolve from engaging the learner’s interest, becoming aware of the issue in their community, and taking action in their community for the common good.

Population density and community development have political and environmental implications. The development of cities, towns, suburbs, and rural America share a common feature; buildings and a transportation system that relies on roadways, parking lots, and the use of concrete, brick and asphalt--all impervious surfaces. As towns and suburbs grow, the commercial and residential building “landscape footprint” can be harmful to the environment unless carefully planned. Learners become aware of the environmental impact of impervious surfaces and take action as environmental stewards.

The unit also illustrates how knowledge of science can inform our decisions and awareness as citizens.

While this unit is written specifically to address the "greening of New Jersey," it is adaptable to any community.  

Focus Questions:
What is the relationship between community development and the environment?
What is my personal responsibility to the use of land?

Using two works of art, students will make comparisons between historic and present-day philanthropic endeavors. They will analyze the contributions of Robert W. Scrivner to modern philanthropy through his work on the Rockefeller Family Fund and recognize how the work of each Robert W. Scrivner Award winner carries on his legacy. In Lesson Two Historic and contemporary Hispanic philanthropists are the focus.

This unit will help the learners more fully understand that every life has meaning and importance as well as explore the concept of there being far more good than evil in the world.  The learners will discover how individual acts have/can contribute to violence and intolerance, but that history shows society also has the capacity for respecting the beliefs, practices, and behaviors of others.  Finally, the learners will see that, as individuals, they too can contribute their aesthetic artistic talents to advocate for tolerance, non-violence, justice and beauty thus making our community and world a better place in which to live.

Focus Questions

• What values or beliefs can build a stronger community?
• What role does art play in a civil society?
• How can art contribute to promoting values and beliefs?
• How can art encourage philanthropic behavior?

The purpose of this unit is to give the learners an historical perspective of social injustices (such as racial intolerance) and social needs.  The learners will use rhetoric to create an authentic argument for change, develop that rhetoric into an action plan and conduct a group service project.

FOCUS QUESTION: How have social injustices/social needs been addressed in the past, and how can learners address them today?

1) Although this lesson was designed for Muskegon, MI, it can be used in any community with a United Way connection

This unit allows students to study and create oral histories of people who have experienced previous events in history and to share this knowledge with others.

Focus questions include:

• What can we learn about history by listening to the stories of others?
• How have others demonstrated service for the common good?
• How can the experiences of others be used to teach younger citizens about service for the common good?

Learners will explore the concept of environmental stewardship and the role they can play ‘even as just one individual’ in helping to make their home, school, community, and world a better place in which to live, work and play by recycling.The purpose of this unit is to assist the learner in developing a deeper understanding of what it means to be an environmental steward and to apply this knowledge to identified environmental problems as they relate to the use of the Earth’s natural resources and recycling efforts. 
Focus Question: “How can I effect positive change in the environment?”
 

In this unit students will learn about the power of writing for creating positive social change by studying writers who use their writing as a means of activism and by using those same tools to become activist writers themselves. Students will see how writing is a means of social activism for the common good, and hence philanthropy. They will study how people, through their writing, have changed the world and how writing can empower even the most disenfranchised.