Green Kindergartens
Environmental Literacy in Kindergartens
Updated: 22/11/2009
Kindergartens have a critical role to play in setting the educational infrastructure or basis for the understanding of basic concepts at the personal and social levels. Therefore, the responsibility borne by kindergarten teachers is considerable. Cultivating environmental literacy in the kindergarten is of major importance since it is at this early age that we can try to instill positive attitudes toward the human and physical environment, in the present and in the future.Curriculum programs at the preschool level should be developed using an interdisciplinary approach, which accords with the developmental level of the children and their fields of interest. Accreditation of Green Kindergartens
The aim of the "Green Kindergarten" program is to lead kindergartens through an educational process in which the children, kindergarten teachers, assistants and parents take part in incorporating environmental subjects into the kindergarten. The accreditation process for Green Kindergartens was initiated in 2006 by the Ministry of Environmental Protection in cooperation with the Ministry of Education. In order to initiate the greening process, a kindergarten teacher must prepare the following: - Annual work plan on environmental subjects: the annual work plan should relate to at least three of the following subjects: waste treatment, noise, water, animals, cleanliness of public places, green consumption, environmental planning, hazardous substances, nature protection, proper nutrition, disease prevention.
- Community-oriented environmental projects: involvement of the community in the environment through activities aimed at raising awareness and changing behavioral norms in environmental realms. Examples of community participation may include: adopt-a-site, information activities on the environment, treatment of environmental problems in the jurisdiction of the local authority, organization of environmental events such as green days, environmental happenings, etc.
- Behavioral expression of environmental literacy in the kindergarten's life: activities meant to conserve natural resources and reduce environmental pollution in at least one of the following areas : noise (e.g., improving the culture of speaking), waste (e.g., reuse of waste, collection of waste including batteries, bottles, plastic bags for recycling), ecological garden (e.g., with water saving plants, wise irrigation, fertilization using compost), treatment of problems relevant to the community (e.g., by contacting the local authority, etc.), activities aimed at cultivating and caring for the natural environment around the kindergarten (e.g., planting wildflowers), sustainability (e.g., promoting biodiversity through feeding stations and nesting sites for birds), electricity savings (e.g., curtains for shade) and green consumption (e.g., purchase of environment-friendly products such as non-disposable dishes for birthday parties).
Only those kindergartens that formulate and implement these three prerequisites will be eligible for consideration by the steering committee, composed of representatives of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Ministry of Education and local authorities. Accredited kindergartens are awarded a monetary grant and are invited to a festive ceremony in which the certificates are granted. In 2007, 32 Green Kindergartens from all over the country, were accredited, including two clusters composed of 15 kindergartens. A kindergarten cluster is a group of kindergartens, each with a different teacher, which share a common structure and common resources, and often work together in line with a common educational approach. In 2008, 82 more green kindergartens were certified, including eight in the Arab sector. In 2009, 160 Green Kindergartens were accredited, bringing the total to 274 kindergartens. The attached file for download in Hebrew includes photos of some of the activities carried out by Israel's Green Kindergartens.
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