Ecological Transition Education: A Key Part of the 2022 Revised Curriculum!
For effective ecological transition classes
Useful and practical picture book activities!
A Guide to Ecological Transition Classes with 62 Picture Books on Five Themes

The 'Picture Book Lovers Teachers' Association', which has been widely promoting the value of lessons using picture books, has included environmental education activities linked to picture books.
Environmental issues that might otherwise be discussed only at international conferences, such as global warming, waste management, animal protection, fair trade, and renewable energy, are also deeply connected to children's daily lives.
Teachers should grasp this point and conduct 'ecological transition' classes that change both perception and behavior.


There are countless environmental picture books, but what kinds of activities can we engage with them? Beyond standard activities like writing book reports and drawing posters, are there any effective post-reading activities that can help children actively address environmental issues? This book divides the vast environmental issues into five major themes and introduces 62 picture books.
At the same time, we introduce effective post-reading activities for each of the 62 volumes.
Through this book, teachers will be able to see a variety of reading activities of various sizes and types, from single-class lessons to project-based classes.

Just as we cannot foresee the future, past generations could not have foreseen that their then-current desire for development would lead to the environmental problems we face today.
However, since we are currently 'experiencing' environmental problems and 'recognizing' the crisis, we must try to solve this problem with the future in mind.

---From "Page 7, Opening Note"

Rather than despairing and becoming frustrated about global warming, it is important to know what we can do now and do our best.
I believe that although students' actions to prevent global warming may be small, they will bring about big changes when they come together.
I hope we can consistently practice small steps so that our students can move beyond anxiety and fear about the climate crisis and live as earthlings who reflect on and judge their lives in light of "coexistence with the Earth."

---From "Page 26, The Warming Earth"

The picture book introduces the sewage treatment process, but the words such as sedimentation tank, biological reactor, and disinfection tank may seem difficult.
So, if possible, I recommend visiting the local 'Clean Water Circulation Center (Sewage Treatment Plant)'.
If you apply for a tour in advance, you can receive a detailed explanation of the sewage treatment process under the supervision of a person in charge.
However, for elementary and middle school students, small group tours of 10 or fewer people are recommended for safety reasons.

---From "Page 100, Why Does Environmental Pollution Occur?"

Before reading the picture book, it is necessary to look at the space again through the lens of ‘the zoo from the animals’ perspective.’
When you go to the zoo, talk about positive experiences that were good or beneficial, and negative experiences that were disappointing or uncomfortable, without being biased towards either side.
When there aren't many negative experiences, the teacher can point out that zoo animals are less active than wild animals and guide students to consider why this is and what they think when they see such animals.

---From "Page 162, Why We Must Protect the Ecosystem"

Look at each other's activity sheets with your group friends and write down what you felt.
During the sorting process, students were surprised to find that there were more unnecessary items than they had expected.
They thought they were spending wisely, but they realized they weren't. It was good to be able to think about whether they really needed the things they had, and they responded that they should think about whether the things they buy in the future will really be useful and whether they can reuse the things they have now.

---From "Page 207, What Do We Buy and What Do We Eat?"

As cities form, 'urbanization' occurs, with the urban population increasing and the urban lifestyle expanding to surrounding areas.
Let's explore the pros and cons of urban development using the PMI (Plus Minus Interesting) technique. PMI (Plus Minus Interesting) is a process of recording a specific target's strengths (P), weaknesses (M), and interesting points (I), analyzing and evaluating each, and finding the best solution.

---From "Energy and the City" on page 289