• The Air Isn’t Fair

    The Air Isn’t Fair

    The chants of “I can’t breathe” have faded from our streets, but there are many who still suffer from polluted air in our communities, homes, and schools.

    Cool Green Schools is creating a network of air quality monitoring at schools across different communities in Maryland. We are offering over 200 air quality monitors to schools so their students can study the indoor and outdoor air quality at their schools.

    We don’t stop there. We help students to identify and reduce asthma triggers, how to build low-cost air filters, and how to benchmark the environmental conditions at their schools and homes.

    Why is this important?

    The health of our students doesn’t start or end at our school doors. When our students learn to identify and reduce asthma triggers at school, they can create healthier conditions as their schools and apply these skills to their homes, where they spend even more of their time.

    What can we gain?

    Students will learn to study and improve their environments with professional tools and scientific methods.

    We expect to lower asthma-related absences and improve student performance.

    Our network of monitors will give us a much better understanding of air quality in different neighborhoods and schools.

    To join this project, please contact:

    Shan Gordon Cool Green Schools cell: 410-336-8239 shan@coolgreenschools.org

  • Celebrating Earth Day Gifts

    The chants of “I can’t breathe” have faded from our streets, but there are many who still suffer from polluted air in our communities, homes, and schools.

    Cool Green Schools is creating a network of air quality monitoring at schools across different communities in Maryland. We are offering over 200 air quality monitors to schools so their students can study the indoor and outdoor air quality at their schools.

    We don’t stop there. We help students to identify and reduce asthma triggers, how to build low-cost air filters, and how to benchmark the environmental conditions at their schools and homes.

    Why is this important?

    The health of our students doesn’t start or end at our school doors. When our students learn to identify and reduce asthma triggers at school, they can create healthier conditions as their schools and apply these skills to their homes, where they spend even more of their time.

    What can we gain?

    Students will learn to study and improve their environments with professional tools and scientific methods.

    We expect to lower asthma-related absences and improve student performance.

    Our network of monitors will give us a much better understanding of air quality in different neighborhoods and schools.

    To join this project, please contact:

    Shan Gordon Cool Green Schools cell: 410-336-8239 shan@coolgreenschools.org

  • Community Research: A Catalyst for Social Impact?

    The chants of “I can’t breathe” have faded from our streets, but there are many who still suffer from polluted air in our communities, homes, and schools.

    Cool Green Schools is creating a network of air quality monitoring at schools across different communities in Maryland. We are offering over 200 air quality monitors to schools so their students can study the indoor and outdoor air quality at their schools.

    We don’t stop there. We help students to identify and reduce asthma triggers, how to build low-cost air filters, and how to benchmark the environmental conditions at their schools and homes.

    Why is this important?

    The health of our students doesn’t start or end at our school doors. When our students learn to identify and reduce asthma triggers at school, they can create healthier conditions as their schools and apply these skills to their homes, where they spend even more of their time.

    What can we gain?

    Students will learn to study and improve their environments with professional tools and scientific methods.

    We expect to lower asthma-related absences and improve student performance.

    Our network of monitors will give us a much better understanding of air quality in different neighborhoods and schools.

    To join this project, please contact:

    Shan Gordon Cool Green Schools cell: 410-336-8239 shan@coolgreenschools.org

  • The Air Isn’t Fair

    The Air Isn’t Fair

    After protest chants of “I can’t breath!,” have faded from our streets, we can look at another important social and equity issue: Poor Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) affecting millions of students in our schools. For decades, schools–especially schools in low income districts–have been failing to provide students with the level of air quality which we…

  • Celebrating Earth Day Gifts

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Learning in the World of Wonder: Michel Anderson helps children connect and learn in the natural world

IMG_0289 by Shan Gordon.
Michel Anderson leads a tour of the garden, play areas and forest at the Waldorf school in Baltimore. Children help grow plants used to dye clothes, and chickens which produce eggs given to students on their birthdays.
IMG_0285 by Shan Gordon.
This note above the terrariums prompts children to understand the water cycle and sunlight exposure on plants.
IMG_0284 by Shan Gordon.
Terrariums in a windowed staircase enable students to pass by and observe the water and growth process.
IMG_0268 by Shan Gordon.
Paintings of nature are displayed in hallways. Note the attention to detail and how the images are stylized.
IMG_0265 by Shan Gordon.
Children used sticks, found items and small sculptures to build a miniature village.
IMG_0260 by Shan Gordon.
Teachers photograph children made projects during the garden and outdoor tour at the Waldorf School in Baltimore.
IMG_0329 by Shan Gordon.
Michel Anderson talks about some of the explorations and learning projects he and the children undertake at the outdoor after school program. Students have built shelters from sticks, searched for a colors in nature and created their own names for trees and animals. Anderson said the students also learn the common names, but that naming things themselves empowers the students. These names can be wonderfully descriptive and imaginative. Who could forget the Coconut Weirdo Tree?
IMG_0322 by Shan Gordon.
Michel Anderson talks about the need to keep the innate love of nature that children have, alive. The hours that children spend in observing and adventuring in the forest and gardens helps create that strong connection to the natural world.
IMG_0314 by Shan Gordon.
Willy Herrerra looks at the child made structure in the forest at the Waldorf School.
IMG_0303 by Shan Gordon.
Hay bales, purchased for a few dollars, provided a movable, changeable play structure for children.
IMG_0298 by Shan Gordon.
Michel Anderson supplies each child with a birthday egg. It is a big hit with the children at Waldorf. “If I forget, they will remind me”, Anderson said.

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