ONLINE LEARNING
PBS Systems Literacy Collection
I’m thrilled to partner with PBS Learning Media to make systems literacy (or “thinking about systems”) more accessible to broader audiences. As you’ll see, the collection includes classroom-ready resources for all grade bands, a self-paced module for middle/high school students, and a professional development module for teachers. There are two fun, short videos (see below) of me doing my best to imitate Bill Nye the Science Guy, but with curly hair.
For Educators:
Teaching About Systems: This STEM professional development module for teachers guides you through the basics of systems thinking and shows how you can integrate systems literacy across the grades and across disciplines, including STEM and social studies. It features systems educator Linda Booth Sweeney, and leads you through the process of identifying a system, establishing system boundaries, examining trends of behavior over time, and looking at causal loops. It provides examples of how to use media to introduce systems at each grade band in support of the Next Generation Science Standards. This resource is part of the Systems Literacy Collection.
For Children:
Understanding Dynamic Systems: This self-paced interactive lesson guides students through the process of identifying and analyzing a system. Students cover systems thinking basics and then examine the dynamics of soil health through videos and online exercises that help them make the system visible using tools such as causal loop diagrams. This resource is part of the Systems Literacy Collection.