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FACS of Living Green
Moving from a lifestyle of waste and over-consumption requires changes that we all must make. The FACS curriculum is uniquely positioned to prepare our students, families, schools, and communities to make this important transition. The resources on this page were created to help FACS teachers incorporate the scientific and historical principles of green living into the FACS curriculum. Don’t miss this opportunity to make your program the leader in green practices within your school.
Managing a home with respect for the environment is not a new
concept to Family and Consumer Science. Home Economics founder, Ellen S.
Richards, pioneered the concept more than a century ago. This resource makes it
easy for you to incorporate green living concepts into your existing FACS
curriculum. Teach students to embrace an eco-friendly lifestyle and help them to
understand and appreciate the science supporting the importance of making
responsible choices.
Warm-up activities for every day of the school year created
to make it easy to blend living green into the FACS curriculum. Through the
Green Ingenuity section, students will be encouraged to envision new uses for
everyday objects. Students will also identify eco-friendly actions and
responsibilities: and interpret and appreciate the perspective of green
pioneers. CD includes images of Green Ingenuity items.
What Would Ellen Do? Tote Bag and T-Shirt
FACS By The Book Connections:
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Sewing Green |  |
The Green Crafter |
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Simply Green |
What Would Ellen Do?
As FACS teachers, we have a wonderful role model in FACS Founder Ellen Swallow Richards. In case you don’t know her, let me tell you a little about her remarkable life. Ellen was born in 1842, when educating women was considered unimportant and even unwise. She was blessed with a brilliant and inquisitive mind, but had to overcome many obstacles in order to reach her intellectual potential.
Through her tenacity, hard work and willingness to meet challenges head on, Ellen became the most prominent female American chemist of the 19th century. As the first woman admitted to MIT, she conducted pioneering studies that eventually led to the universal availability of safe drinking water, modern sewage treatment facilities, and standards for safe food and drugs. Ellen’s work effectively touches the lives of every person living in the United States today.
Through her research, writing, and teaching, Ellen established the discipline of home economics, known today as FACS. By setting up model kitchens, establishing programs of study, and organizing conferences, Ellen campaigned tirelessly for home economics education in American schools. In 1908 the American Home Economics Association was founded with Ellen as its first president.
In our society we make role models of sports figures, entertainers, politicians, and movie stars, often with disappointing results. As FACS teachers we have a shining example to follow in Ellen Swallow Richards and her life should inspire us to be the best that we can be inside the classroom as well as in our personal lives.
Think about each of the challenges that you face in your classroom every day. Then ask yourself "What Would Ellen Do?" in response to each of those challenges. Now, of course, we can’t know exactly how Ellen would react to the problems we face today, but I’m confident that she would never throw up her hands in defeat and we shouldn’t either. I believe that Ellen would look for and find creative solutions to each challenge as it presents itself and that’s exactly what we should do as well.
I encourage you to make the phrase "What Would Ellen Do?" your FACS mantra. This simple phrase should remind us to continue to always be open to new ideas and techniques, to make our classrooms a laboratory for 21st century living skills and a sanctuary for students in need of nurturing and special attention. We honor the memory and legacy of Ellen Swallow Richards when we follow her problem-solving example: research and analyze problems, then formulate and implement creative solutions. Above all else, we must remember to, as Ellen often said, "Keep thinking!"