‘The Story of Stuff’ a Hit in Classrooms

The lifecycle of stuff – it’s something that most kids never even consider. Yet, a video that makes the journey of possessions from their creation to their disposal easy to understand for children has become a hit in classrooms across America.  The Story of Stuff by Annie Leonard doesn’t flinch from the harsh realities of how much Americans waste, and the message has hit home for many kids who have watched it.

From The New York Times:

…Riding in the car one day with his parents in Tacoma, Wash., Rafael de la Torre Batker, 9, was worried about whether it would be bad for the planet if he got a new set of Legos.

“When driving by a big-box store, you could see he was struggling with it,” his father, David Batker, said. But then Rafael said, “It’s O.K. if I have Legos because I’m going to keep them for a very long time,” Mr. Batker recalled.

Ms. Leonard put the video on the Internet in December 2007. Word quickly spread among teachers, who recommended it to one another as a brief, provocative way of drawing students into a dialogue about how buying a cellphone or jeans could contribute to environmental devastation.

It has also won support from independent groups that advise teachers on curriculum choices. Facing the Future, a curriculum developer for schools in all 50 states, is drafting lesson plans based on the video. And Ms. Leonard has a contract with Simon & Schuster to write a book based on the video.

Teachers are actually relying on The Story of Stuff to fill in the gaps in what textbooks say about the environment, and what science has revealed over the past few years. Educators want to teach children about global warming, but have been frustrated by a lack of coverage in traditional teaching materials.

While there have been a few complaints – like the parent in Montana who protested that the video is ‘anti-capitalist’ – all in all, the response has been amazing. Leonard, a former Greenpeace employee, attributes a good part of the video’s success to its simple, easy-to-follow black and white illustrations, but truly, it’s the content that makes it so powerful.

Of course, The Story of Stuff isn’t just for kids. If you haven’t seen it yet, take 20 minutes of your day to do so and you’ll instantly see every item you own in a different light.

Link [The New York Times] + [The Story of Stuff]

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