Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes

Tune In: Concentric circles

10 minutes

Find Out: What is Earth Hour?

25 minutes

Take Action: Plan your event

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions and success criteria

Students will:

understand the benefits of partaking in Earth Hour
build an understanding of the impacts of climate change
use their project planning skills to organise their Earth Hour events.

Students can:

assess their environmental impact
brainstorm, plan and implement an event for Earth Hour.

Tune In: Concentric circles

Step 1

Draw three concentric circles on the whiteboard for students to see. Label each circle with “inner, community and world”. You may like to use the following example:

Guide students to observe the concentric circles and ask students:

What is your environmental impact on your inner circle (of friends, family, the people you know)?

What is the environmental impact on your community (school, sporting clubs, neighbourhood, cultural group)?
What is your environmental impact on the world (beyond your immediate environment)? How do your choices impact the world around you?

As students contribute to the discussion, jot down their responses in the relevant circle on the whiteboard.

Literacy extension:

Take an affirmative or negative position on one of the following topics, and write a persuasive piece between 300-500 words:

Can one hour make a difference?
If politicians make the big decisions, can young people make any difference?
Can one person’s actions make a difference in the state of the environment?

Step 2

Explain to your students that understanding our environmental impact helps us make informed decisions, promotes healthier decisions, and allows us to foster global responsibility to ensure a more sustainable future for all.

Find Out: What is Earth Hour?

Step 1

Show this video to students:

Earth Hour 2024 Official Video - (youtu.be/HeX1h24ntZY)

Step 2

Conduct a five-minute survey with students to deepen their understanding of Earth Hour on the Student Worksheet. Suggested answers are in the following table:

What is Earth Hour?	Earth Hour is an annual global event organised by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) to raise awareness about climate change and environmental issues such as nature loss.
Why is Earth Hour important?	The event encourages people to consider their environmental impact while inspiring long-term actions and changes in behaviour to support a more sustainable future.
What does Earth Hour encourage people to do?	It aims to encourage people to consider their environmental impact and to promote sustainable practices.
Who can participate in Earth Hour?	Individuals, communities, schools and businesses.
How do you participate in Earth Hour?	Turning off non-essential electric lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 pm local time, on a specific day (usually the last Saturday of March). For schools, Earth Hour is usually the Friday before.

Take Action: Plan your event

Step 1

Explain to students that they will participate in Earth Hour by planning an Earth Hour event for the school community. Students will take action to reduce their carbon footprint by planning how to conduct their Earth Hour events and implementing creative ways for all members of the school community to participate.

Step 2

Divide students into groups of four. Each group will collaborate to brainstorm and research their Earth Hour event using the action plan in the Student Worksheet.

If your students are stuck for ideas and need help, read the list below:

• Host an Earth Hour assembly during the week of Earth Hour.
• Invite students to participate, or ask a guest speaker to come along.
• Conduct a student-led school energy audit the week of Earth Hour.
• Collate and graph data from the school energy bills to identify trends in your energy use.
• Run a recycled waste competition.
• Involve your local community.
• Tell them you’re participating in Earth Hour and why. Include an informative segment in your school newsletter to encourage them to switch to renewable energy.
• Hold an Earth Hour fête where students bring recycled items such as toys, clothes and books to swap.
• Wear It Wild - dress up as your favourite animal to raise money and spread awareness of nature loss.

Reflection

After students have run their event within their school environment, direct them to complete section 5, ‘Evaluation of the Event,’ on the Student Worksheet.

Earth Hour - Darkness for a Cause

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Summary

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