After learning about the delicate balance and benefits of lakes and rivers, participants raise awareness of the need for responsible citizenship to maintain local water ecosystems.

Through exploration, we see how six simple machines do their jobs together to get work done. Just as each machine is unique and valuable to the whole, so is each person unique and valuable to our group, to nature, and to the world. We see the value of deliberately respecting others and listening to the contributions of others for a strong community.

The book The Empty Pot by Demi tells a fable of a Chinese emporer who wants to find the most worthy to take his place. What does it mean to be a worthy community leader? 

Participants identify the impact of humans on lakes and rivers. They explore ways to take responsibility to protect the waterways.

Participants discuss the attributes and benefits of local water resources and ecosystems. They identify the interrelatedness of humans and the environment in the book A River Ran Wild, and discuss how the way we treat the water impacts our lives.

In this lesson, we explore where vegetables come from and how they are preserved for healthy eating. 

These activities raise awareness of the five senses and the role the senses play in making food choices. We read a book about the senses and practice using them in center activities.

The entire family is invited to a family night to assemble dried soup kits to donate to a local food pantry. They may use the dehydrated vegetables from lesson one and other ingredients or contact a food-packing organization that provides the ingredients, and you provide the volunteers.  

In this lesson, the children identify foods to eat each day and foods that should be eaten in small amounts. They learn about healthy habits and healthy communities where all people have nutritious food.