In the past year, 17 year old Greta Thunberg has gained fame for her “Fridays for Future” climate school strikes.  What started as one Sweedish teenager walking out of school on Fridays has grown into a global movement, with climate strikes drawing in crowds in the thousands.

Victoria’s Sept. 20 School Strike

This past September , an estimated four million people participated in climate walkouts across the globe. Although numbers haven’t been that high at the strikes since, people of all ages (primarily students) have continued to show up in masses to fight for climate action- and a future worth studying for.

I’ve been lucky enough to attend quite a few of these strikes, and almost always pick out at least a few teachers participating with their elementary aged classes. At the Black Friday strike in November, a grade two class was even offered the megaphone to lead a chant.

November 29 strike in Victoria

I have tremendous respect for the teacher who bring their classes to these walkouts. In fact, I imagine I will someday do so with my future students. However, I am aware that political activism is an inherently contentious issue, and there are risks that come along with involving children.

Here are some pros and cons to bringing young children to climate marches:

Pros: 

  • A field trip to a protest can be a jumping off point for multiple curricular areas of study. Creating protest signs is a fantastic art project, learning about climate change teaches science concepts, and gaining first experience with the politics of activism fosters deeper understanding of social studies concepts.
  • Exposing students to young people who are determined to make a difference is extremely empowering. They will be shown first hand that they are not too small to make a difference, and carry this attitude throughout their lives.
  • Younger elementary children are often passionate about environmental issues, but do not have the resources or capability  to attend such events on their own.

Cons: 

  • Parents may feel as if taking children to such events is “brainwashing” or forcing certain views on students. Not all parents will be in support of school striking or even climate action, so the logistics of running such a field trip could be tricky.
  • The environment of protests can sometimes get out of hand. For example, I was at a climate protest at the Alberta legislature last May where the police began laying hands on youth. Some speakers may choose to focus on topics that are not appropriate for all ages, and anger and hostility are occasionally present in a small minority of protesters.
“There is no planet B”

Although not the easiest activity to organize for a classroom of students, I believe that exposing children to climate protests is extremely important. As sea levels rise and forests burn, it’s time we take action- and empower our students to do the same.