3/4 Carpooling Advocates Are Spreading the News
Because of their homegrown efforts to increase carpooling at FCS—including a video they made this week—Tess’s 3/4 class was interviewed this morning by Daniel Bresette, Executive Director of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI).
Daniel plans to write an article about the students’ project in EESI’s newsletter, Climate Change Solutions. He is also an FCS parent (of Kindergartener Colin Bresette), and his interest in the 3/4 project was piqued when he received a survey from the 3rd and 4th graders in his inbox.
“Your responses will help us determine how to support next year's families in creating sustainable carpooling groups,” the students said in their email. Daniel answered the survey, and also asked Tess if he could learn more about what the students are doing.
In their class interview today, the students were on their own to explain the project, because Tess’s voice has been reduced to a whisper by a cold. Fourth grader Ally Thomas described the results of the survey, which showed that most families say “maybe” to carpooling. Third grader Beckett Djunaidy explained that afternoon logistics are particularly complicated for families; long distances are also an issue, said 4th grader Manny Medina Frigm. Fourth grader Kendall McMillan explained why carpooling was the focus of their environmental efforts rather than recycling.
Daniel told the students that their work is on the right path, because the transportation sector is biggest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. The students also had a few questions for Daniel. Does he have an electric car? Why not? While he doesn’t yet (his old car is going strong), it’s a subject that Daniel knows well. Daniel has worked extensively to develop new proposals to ensure that new homes and commercial buildings have the wiring to support electric car charging, he explained.
The students’ project began in September, as climate strikes across the world prompted both inquiries and a spirit of action in Tess’s 3/4. Teachers found ways to incorporate the subject across disciplines. In science, students learned about the carbon cycle and the atmosphere. In the Language Arts nonfiction unit, the classroom library was stocked with requested texts about climate change and its effects. In conjunction with a geography unit on the continents, students studied climate activists from all seven continents.
The 3/4 survey tried to identify why more FCS families don’t carpool. Nineteen percent of the 140 respondents said it’s because they don’t know how to find people to carpool with or need help coordinating schedules. The students researched what resources the school provides (the map on the FCS portal) and brainstormed about other ways to match families (how about classified ads in the student newspaper, The FoCuS?). This week, they placed an advertisement in The FoCuS and wrote and produced a short video explaining how parents can find a “carpool buddy.” Watch the video below.
Located in College Park, MD, Friends Community School is a progressive Quaker K-8 day school, founded on the belief that every child is a valued member of our community. We offer a challenging curriculum imbued with strong values of equality, integrity, community, environmental stewardship, simplicity and peaceful conflict resolution, rooted in our Quaker heritage.
Friends Community School
5901 Westchester Park Drive
College Park, Maryland 20740
301-441-2100
5901 Westchester Park Drive
College Park, Maryland 20740
301-441-2100
