Abstract
The Sustainability Academy at Lawrence Barnes is the USA’s first sustainability-themed elementary magnet school. The Sustainability Academy, located in Burlington, Vermont, was created by the Burlington School District in partnership with Shelburne Farms, a nonprofit education organization. This chapter outlines the history of the school’s transformation and lessons learned throughout this process. Education for sustainability in an elementary school setting is discussed in depth, highlighting examples of emergent curriculum and student learning. Essential elements, including evaluation, collaboration, community partnerships, curriculum, and leadership, are explored.
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Notes
- 1.
Magnet schools are public schools with a specialized curriculum focus. The term “magnet” refers to the expectation that a magnet school will attract students from across traditional neighborhood or district boundaries to serve a more diverse student population. For example, magnet schools often are designed with the intention of increasing racial, language or socioeconomic integration within a school district.
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© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.
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Cirillo, J., Tewksbury-Frye, A. (2013). Teaching and Learning Toward a Sustainable Future: The Sustainability Academy at Lawrence Barnes. In: McKeown, R., Nolet, V. (eds) Schooling for Sustainable Development in Canada and the United States. Schooling for Sustainable Development, vol 4. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4273-4_9
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