HomeYouth LessonsGardening in Our Warming World: Youth Grow!Unit Four – Let’s Do It!Planning and Leading an Educational Event

Planning and Leading an Educational Event

Overview

This activity provides the steps and the leader guidance that youth will need to plan and implement an educational outreach event. Youth interested in leading and Focused Groupteaching others to take action will perform this activity. We would like to emphasize that an event need not be large to be effective. Sometimes smaller, intimate gatherings have a great impact.

Skill Level

Advanced

Learner Outcomes, Youth will:
  • Collaborate with peers, adult leaders and community members to plan, organize and implement a public educational outreach program or event.
  • Identify program goals, educational and financial resources, outcomes, and organizational approaches.
  • Team up with others to meet community needs and educational objectives.
  • Utilize facilitation and teaching tools and strategies to organize, plan and lead others.
  • Develop and utilize tools to evaluate program needs and success.
Education Standards
  • HS-ETS1-1. Analyze a major global challenge to specify criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
  • HS-ESS3-1. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity.
  • HS-LS2-7. Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.
Success Indicators

Youth use planning, organizational and presentation skills to lead and teach others.

Life Skills

Resiliency, goal setting, problem solving, service learning, responsibility, teamwork, leadership, community service/volunteering.

Time Needed

Varies

Materials List: Chart paper, white board or other material to create a vision / planning board, note pads or notebooks for each person, pens, markers, sticky note pads.

Space

A place to meet on a regular basis to plan.

Suggested Group Size

Varies

Introduction

This activity provides the steps and the leader guidance that youth will need to plan and implement an educational outreach event. Youth interested in leading and teaching others to take action will perform this activity. This serves as a planning guide and first steps in implementing an actual event. Depending on your resources and adult supervision, the venue size is up to you. This may be a series of presentations delivered to small groups, as online webinars, or a larger undertaking such as an assembly or conference style event. Youth will decide the content (with guidance) and if they choose to teach or facilitate others. This is an opportunity for your group to shine as leaders and use what they have learned to share this knowledge with others.

We would like to emphasize that an event need not be large to be effective. Sometimes smaller, intimate gatherings have a great impact.

Opening Questions
  • How do you see yourself teaching others about taking action towards alleviating the effects of Climate Change?
  • If you could choose, would you like to be a presenter or a facilitator?
  • In teaching others, what topics and ideas would you want to share with your peers?
  • Which do you think would be more effective in getting your message across to others, a large one or two-day event or a series of smaller events or workshops over a longer period of time? Why?
  • Think about those people in your community taking action against climate change (refer to Unit 3). Would they like to share their story?

Background Information

This activity is the result of the culmination of all curriculum activities done in this unit and Units 1-3.

Before the Activity

Assemble and prepare any resources and paperwork needed to produce an educational outreach event such as this, if needed, any photo-release and risk waiver forms, permission slips, insurance certificates/ hold harmless agreements, venue contracts, etc. Create a meeting agenda and gather materials needed for brainstorming and planning meetings. Set a tentative schedule of meeting times during the planning process. On six separate pages of chart paper to be hung on a wall in front of the group, label each page with one of these headings: 1. Why 2. How 3. When 4. Where 5. What and 6. Who.

Let’s Do It!

Introduce the activity by showing the video “Teaching Climate Change” from NOAA: Ask what they thought about the video and opening questions.

Facilitate an initial brainstorming session using the six prepared chart pages. Have youth to write ideas and answers on sticky notes, on how they will present Climate Change Action education (see below as a guide). Have them attach their written notes to the corresponding charts.

Optional: After final decisions have been made, consider creating a vision board to illustrate the overall planning process.

As a group, brainstorm event plans, outcomes and goals: Why, How, When, Where, What and Who?

Why: Goals!
  • Who is our audience? Why?
  • What message(s) to we want to convey?
  • What outcome (goals) do we want to meet?
  • Anything else?
How will we put on such an event?
  • Will this be a virtual event, one-day summit, or series of workshops over a longer period of time?
  • What financial resources, if any, do we need to put on such an event?
  • Can we find sponsors and community leader to help support our goals?
  • Anything else?
When will this take place?
  • Decide on a date or dates and alternates based on availability and everyone’s schedules and needs. Be mindful of holidays and school breaks.
  • Anything else?
Where: The Space
  • Where will the event take place? A school, local community space, theater, auditorium, classrooms?
  • Does this space have the technology, audio/visual we will need?
  • Who do we need to contact to secure the space? (school principal, custodial, etc.)
  • Will there be food, refreshments?
  • Anything else?
What: The Agenda
  • What topics will you cover?
  • Who will present these topics? Students? Local experts? Both? Will there be a keynote speaker?
  • What does the schedule look like?
  • Will there be hands-on workshops that require materials?
  • Anything else?
Who: The Team

Who will be on teach committee/planning team? Invite community members and friends to be on the planning team if they are interested. Identify two co-chairs who will lead the planning meetings, prepare agendas and scribe meeting minutes. Who will do what? Decide on who will join and lead each of these teams:

  • Event Space: Meet with the facility, confirm everything and be sure they have the space and resources we need. Work with adult leaders to complete any paperwork, insurance forms.
  • Event Agenda: Plan the schedule, topics, speakers. Work with Event Space group to coordinate where sessions are to be held.
  • Housekeeping: set up/clean up
  • Documenting/ Photographing: will someone be on hand to document the program?
  • Materials/ handouts/refreshments: who will be sure speakers and participants have materials they need? Organize any refreshments.
  • Evaluation: who will create a feedback form for after the event and compile the results?
  • Facilitators/ Room Hosts: Who will be on hand to make sure all of the above runs smoothly? Who are the people that speakers and others can go to for answers? Who will be assigned to a room and/or speaker to be sure they have what they need?
  • Anything else?

Talk it Over

Reflect

After the initial brainstorming session, reflect the results of the discussion and decide as a group your next steps. Set a plan to meet, including when/where/how often the group will meet to continue the planning process of the event.

Share

At each planning meeting, each team should be prepared to report any progress in between meetings, and what steps still need to be completed.

Apply

Put your plan into action!

References

NOAA, Climate.Gov, Teaching Climate.

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