November 11, 2025 • 31 mins
A classroom can be a launchpad for climate action when reading meets real life. We sit down with Miami-area educator Catherine Manfra to explore how English language arts becomes a powerful space for climate literacy, creative expression, and student agency—especially in a region living with hurricanes, sea-level rise, and rapid development at the edge of the Everglades.
Catherine walks us through her Earth Day unit anchored by Hope Jahren’s The Story of More and climate-focused poetry, showing how accessible science writing invites teens into complex topics without overwhelming them. From lunchroom showcases to one-minute PSAs, her students translate facts into story, practice tight writing and media literacy, and share concrete steps that counter defeatism. We also unpack how giving students information and choice sparks deeper research, community involvement, and everyday action.
Beyond the classroom, we highlight the Stories-To-Live-By collective, a statewide network of teachers and researchers crafting place-based, multimodal approaches to climate education while navigating book bans and shifting policies. Catherine shares how the group’s workshops and shared resources build confidence. She also talks about how the Fairchild Challenge debate strengthens ELA standards, STEM integration, and civic discourse by asking students to argue multiple sides of timely environmental issues. It’s a hopeful blueprint for educators who want rigorous, inclusive climate literacies that prepare young people for a just, livable future.
If this conversation resonates, follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a review with your favorite climate literacy text or project idea. Your feedback helps us bring more teacher-tested practices to more classrooms.
Catherine is a Florida native. Born in Hialeah, a suburb of Miami with a predominantly Hispanic community, she now lives in the Kendall area just south of Miami. She has seen Miami-Dade County continue to expand westward since her childhood, including encroachment on the Florida Everglades. The Florida Everglades are ecologically significant in their role as a subtropical wilderness, a habitat for many threatened and endangered species, and a provider of flood control, water filtration, and freshwater supply for millions of people. She became a part of the Stories-To-Live-By project by answering an initial online survey of teachers who incorporate environmental topics into their curriculum. After teaching all levels of high school English in public schools in Miami-Dade County for 22 years, Catherine now teaches at Palmer Trinity School, an independent private school. Additionally, Catherine is a part of the Junior League of Miami, a women's group that serves and focuses on women's and children's issues in the community from education to safety.
To cite this episode:
Persohn, L. (Host). (2025, Oct 14). A Stories-To-Live-By Conversation with Catherine Manfra. (Season 6, No. 4) [Audio podcast episode]. In Classroom Caffeine Podcast series. https://www.classroomcaffeine.com/guests. DOI: 10.5240/33A8-951D-21CD-B5CE-9F8A-B
Connect with Classroom Caffeine at www.classroomcaffeine.com or on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Lindsay Persohn (00:10):
Education research has a problem.
The work of brilliantresearchers often doesn't reach
the practice of brilliantteachers.
Over the years, we've alsotalked about how the work of
brilliant teachers often doesnot inform the work of education
researchers.
In this special series ofClassroom Caffeine, in
collaboration with the Storiesto Live by Collective, we
(00:32):
highlight this group of K-12teachers from across the state
of Florida and former teachersnow in higher education who are
working together to sense- makeand take action.
We talk with educators andresearchers who are working
together to explore how literacyteaching can respond to the
climate crisis.
Since 2021, they have gatheredin person and online to write,
(00:55):
make art, share stories, andreflect on how climate change is
shaping our classrooms andcommunities.
Supported by grants andpartnerships, they hold regular
workshops and virtual meetings,creating space for teachers to
learn from one another whilenavigating challenges like book
bans, censorship laws, and therealities of living through
major hurricanes.
(01:15):
Through this work, the group isstudying how teachers use
stories, place-based activities,and multimodal composing to
bring climate change intoEnglish language arts
classrooms.
Their collaborative researchasks, how do teachers tell
stories about climate change?
How do they navigate thepolitical, social, and
environmental pressures of theirschools?
And how can they build newliteracies that prepare young
(01:38):
people for more just and livablefutures?
In each episode of this specialseries, we talk with a
collaborator in the Stories toLive By collective about their
experiences, connections, andlearning through this work
together.
In this Stories to Live Byepisode, Catherine Monfra talks
to us about her passion forsupporting students to
(01:58):
understand the environmentalimpact of their everyday
choices.
Catherine is a Florida native.
Born in Hialeah, a suburb ofMiami with a predominantly
Hispanic community, she nowlives in the Kendall area just
south of Miami.
She has seen Miami-Dade Countycontinue to expand westward
since her childhood, includingencroachment on the Florida
(02:20):
Everglades.
The Florida Everglades areecologically significant in
their role as a subtropicalwilderness, a habitat for many
threatened and endangeredspecies, and a provider of flood
control, water filtration, anda freshwater supply for millions
of people.
After teaching all levels ofhigh school English in public
(02:41):
schools in Miami-Dade County for22 years, Catherine now teaches
at Palmer Trinity School, anindependent private school.
Additionally, Catherine is apart of the Junior League of
Miami, a women's group thatserves and focuses on women's
and children's issues in thecommunity from education to
safety.
She became a part of theStories to Live By project by
(03:03):
answering an initial onlinesurvey of teachers that
incorporate environmental topicsinto their curriculum.
Catherine offers insights intoteaching practices and her
thinking around bringing climateliteracies and environmental
education into her Englishlanguage arts classroom.
So pour a cup of your favoritedrink and join me, your host,
(03:25):
Lindsay Persohn, for thisspecial series of Classroom
Caffeine.
Stories to live by that aresure to energize your thinking
and your teaching practice.
Catherine, thank you forjoining me.
Welcome to the show.
Catherine Manfra (03:38):
Oh, thank you so much for having me, Lindsay.
Lindsay Persohn (03:41):
So, from your own experiences, will you share
one or two moments that informyour thinking about climate
literacies?
Catherine Manfra (03:49):
So for me, it really started in elementary
school with watching shows likeCaptain Planet, the cartoon, and
I don't know, it just reallyimpacted me.
I was one of those studentsthat whenever there was some
kind of project related to EarthDay or the environment or
(04:13):
anything like that, I was alwaysvery much engaged because even
though I'm not much of anoutdoorsy person, like I don't
really do the camping thing, butI do realize how important our
environment is and how we needto, you know, just take care of
this place because we live on afinite planet that at some
(04:37):
point, you know, is is going togive, and we're the ones
responsible for taking care ofit.
So then when I became a highschool English teacher, whenever
I could fit in environmentaltexts or do environmental
literature, I would, you know,find a way to put it into my
(05:00):
curriculum so that my studentscould also be engaged in that.
And I think the the currentgeneration of students I have do
recognize that, you know, thisis an issue that we need to
address sooner rather thanlater.
Lindsay Persohn (05:19):
I think that's been my experience also, is the
the generation coming up.
I think even in theirlifetimes, they feel like
they've experienced effects ofthe climate changing.
And for them, it's not a matterthat's up for debate.
I think you know, they they dosee the effects in their own
lives.
And I think there's nothingthat shapes your thinking more
(05:40):
than our own personalexperiences.
Catherine Manfra (05:42):
Yeah.
My daughter, who's 16 now, wehave conversations about it, and
you know, she gets verypassionate about how she doesn't
understand how there's peoplethat could, you know, call it a
hoax or or say that this isn'treal.
Because, like you said, even inher 16 years, like she'll point
(06:07):
out, like, mom, I don'tremember the summers being this
unbearable, or I don't rememberthe thunderstorms, you know,
being this bad, where it'salmost like not mini hurricane,
but like a mini tropical storm,like pops out of nowhere.
So yeah, it's definitely hereand and the way I handle my
(06:31):
classroom is I believe that I amhere to share information with
my students and give them accessto the information.
And then it's their decision,you know, what they do with
that.
Do they want to go ahead and,you know, do their own deeper
dive and learn more?
(06:53):
Do they want to get involved inthe community in ways that help
the environment?
I just give them the resourcesand then let them go from there.
Lindsay Persohn (07:04):
Yeah, that's a I think it's a very smart
approach because it does leteveryone think about issues from
their own lens in an informedway, right?
Through those resources and andtheir own experiences.
So, what do you want listenersto know about your work related
to climate literacies?
Catherine Manfra (07:25):
So, in in my classroom, I think it's
important to share my personalexperiences when it comes to the
environment, whether that'swhat I do in my own time, you
know, doing beach cleanups, youknow, the little things
recycling or composting, or justeven being out in nature and
(07:48):
writing about it, having thosemoments of just appreciating,
you know, what we have rightnow, whether it's sitting by a
lake or listening to the oceanwaves, you know, all of that
stuff I think is important.
And so I share thoseexperiences with my students.
(08:10):
And then it's going into youknow reading pieces that are
related to the environment.
There's so much poetry thattouches upon the environment and
nature, and I specifically havebeen using "The Story of More"
by Hope Jahren the last severalyears in my classroom.
(08:33):
And I typically use it aroundApril, which is when Earth Day
is, and so I've developed acurriculum using that novel.
And so I'll have the studentswe read it in class, and then I
give them a culminating project,and and the project has has
(08:55):
changed over the years.
The first time I did it, I hadthem create science boards where
they would during the lunchperiod go into the the lunchroom
and share what they learnedwith their fellow classmates and
schoolmates from around theschool and just kind of talk
(09:17):
with the students about thatparticular book is broken into
sections.
So there's a section about theocean, a section about food
production, a section about thethe earth itself, and so each of
the groups would get adifferent section of the book to
(09:38):
talk about.
So, that was the first coupleyears I did different variations
of that.
And then this past year, I hadstudents create a PSA, a one one
to one and a half minute PSAthat they shared with the class.
And then, of course, I toldthem if they wanted to upload it
on YouTube, they could.
(09:58):
And some of their videos oraudio recordings were very
creative.
One of the students createdlike a spoken word poem based on
what she learned from the book.
There were several thatcreated, you know, videos of
animals and just general imagesof the earth and talking about
(10:23):
ways that they could, you know,help.
Because I think one of the mostimportant things I share with
the students is that any littledecision that they make can make
a difference.
I don't want them to just throwtheir hands in the air and say,
well, what I do doesn't make adifference because it does.
If they decide to throw theirwater bottle, their plastic
(10:48):
water bottle or their can ofsoda in the recycle bin instead
of the general trash can, that'sgonna make a difference.
It's when they get this ideathat it's not gonna help at all,
this defeatism, if you will,that I'm trying to get them out
(11:10):
of.
And I think most of my studentsdefinitely do feel like they
can make a difference.
So that's that's kind of whereI'm at in my classroom.
Lindsay Persohn (11:22):
And Catherine, this is such, I mean, it's such
a positive teaching practice ingeneral, right?
To help our students understandthat their actions do, in fact,
matter, what they think mattersand what they do matters.
And the way that you've relatedthat to a book that you all
read together and a follow-upproject, I think I can just only
(11:42):
imagine the impact that thathas on your students for today,
but also in the long run, right?
I think that's it's just such acritical message to share with
young people, really withanyone, that what they do does
have an impact on themselves,you know, and the way they feel
about things, but also oneveryone around them and
(12:02):
ultimately, you know, theirenvironment and as you pointed
out, the planet that we allshare.
So what a what a great way toutilize a story.
And this is one I have not readyet.
So I'm gonna have to add thisto my my reading list, "The
Story of More." Because yeah, II can imagine there's so many
different ways that projectscould go.
Catherine Manfra (12:23):
Yeah.
The first book I that I read byHope Jahren was called Lab
Girl.
Her writing, because a lot oftimes scientific writing is very
dry or boring or technical fora lot of people.
And so the way she writes isjust so clear.
(12:47):
I mean, I even when I firstintroduced the book with my own
students, I tell them, I'm like,you're going to read this book
and you're going to be able tounderstand it in such a way
because she writes for theaverage person to be able to
understand what's going on.
(13:09):
It's, you know, not, I mean,she does use technical terms and
the science and everything, butit's in such a way that you can
see, you can feel what's goingon and digest the information in
a way that's not boring, that'snot so dense.
(13:31):
And so I think it's it's agreat book to use with the
students.
And and I, you know, the firstwhen we read the introduction
together and and we finish ittogether, I look at them and and
I ask them, I'm like, you know,was there anything in that
introduction that you didn'tunderstand or that was so
(13:54):
technical that that you didn'tget it?
Or was it so clear that you'relike, wow, like I get it.
I understand what she's talkingabout.
And and they all they're like,yeah, I want to keep reading.
and that's such a wonderfulthing when the students are
like, yeah, this isn't boring,because unfortunately, a lot of
(14:16):
times the literature that wehave to cover is not easy for
the students.
And so when when you get apiece where it's easily
digestible, it just it makes itmore enjoyable.
And then seeing them be excitedabout continuing to read and
(14:36):
wanting to read what she has tosay really just brings it home.
Lindsay Persohn (14:43):
Yeah, that accessibility of a text is is so
critical.
And for it to contain importantand easy to understand
information on top of beingengaging, it sounds like it's
just a great choice for youraudience.
Yeah.
So let me ask you kind of afollow-up question to that,
Catherine.
So you participated in theStories to Live by project, and
(15:06):
I'm wondering how that may havehelped to further or shape your
thinking about how you talkabout these topics, you know,
how you might inspire highschool age learners to maybe
continue thinking on this path,or, you know, what do they do
with those ideas?
I guess I'm just wondering howthe project has helped you to
(15:27):
sort of further your ownthinking and your teaching.
Catherine Manfra (15:30):
Well, first of all, I was so grateful to be
part of this group of teachersfrom around the state.
And it just made me feel likeI'm not alone in my, you know,
wanting to include these typesof topics in my classroom
because it does feel sometimeslike we're being restricted in
(15:55):
what we can teach and not teach.
And so this group reaffirmedthat the things I'm doing in my
classroom with environmentalliteracy is important and that
there are others that are doingsimilar things.
And so I was very grateful tobe able to add my own ideas with
(16:19):
the other teachers, learningnew ways to, you know, share
environmental projects with mystudents and just kind of have
this springboard of working withothers and and sharing ideas.
I mean, it was each time wemet, whether it was virtually or
(16:39):
in person, I just I felt asense of of community and a
sense of, you know, we're we'redoing the right thing and we're
doing something in ourclassrooms that is going to
benefit our students from, youknow, just sharing a different,
(17:02):
I mean, even the children'sbooks that we would receive in
our meetings together, I sharedit with my high school students
because honestly, I still thinkthat high school students are
children at heart and they loveto be read too.
And so I would read the thechildren's books that I received
(17:24):
from the group and you know,just just kind of have a little
moment with them to you knowremember what it's like to be a
kid.
And you know, I think the mostimportant thing from the project
was just learning a variety ofways to incorporate in our
(17:47):
classrooms the ideas of you knowenvironmentalism in general.
It's not something - a lot oftimes, we know many of our
colleagues stay away from thegeneral, you know, environmental
topic because of the politicsinvolved - but we were like, you
(18:10):
know, this is important andthere are ways to get around it,
you know, especially like ifit's important to get the
parents to understand what we'redoing in our classrooms and the
students as well.
So those were the kind ofconversations that we had, and
(18:37):
we would walk away feeling like,okay, you know, we can do this,
and we don't have to be afraidof what we're doing because in
the end we are teaching, whichis our job as educators, and
we're doing it in a way that isnot pushing any particular
(18:59):
agenda, we're just sharing theinformation and where the
students go from there is up tothem.
And also, as I mentioned, thethe parents.
Lindsay Persohn (19:14):
I think there's obviously so much to learn just
by inviting criticalperspectives, regardless of what
the issue is.
But whenever you, whenever yourstudents know that you're
talking about something thatcould be seen as contentious in
some circles, I think wheneveryou can push them to say, well,
here is information.
What are we going to do withit?
What questions do you haveabout it?
(19:34):
What kind of sense are youmaking of it?
And I think encouraging thateven healthy debate within our
own classrooms, it meets a lotof educational goals, right?
Of you know, supporting civicengagement and the idea of
collaborating with others andyou know, civil conversations
(19:54):
and discourse.
I think all of those things arejust so important and maybe
even more important now thanthey have been within my or your
teaching career, you know?
Catherine Manfra (20:06):
Exactly.
And I've also been I'm in theMiami-Dade County system, and
I'm lucky enough that we havethe Fairchild Tropical Gardens,
botanical gardens here.
And for I think it's over 15years now, they've been holding
(20:27):
an annual Fairchild Challengethat elementary, middle, and
high school students canparticipate in with their
teachers.
And each challenge, you know,it's gone through changes over
the years, but it's a programthat you can fit into your
curriculum.
They provide, you know, whatstandards are being met by these
(20:50):
challenges with our students.
STEM is definitely a big areathat they want to promote in our
classroom.
So it also, you know, allows usto incorporate that.
So Fairchild, I've been doingit for I think close to 10
years.
Though the main one that I'vebeen participating in is the
(21:13):
environmental debate challenge.
And I do that with my APlanguage and composition
students because they have tolearn how to argue and argue
well, have a line of reasoningwhen they're, you know, coming
up with their ideas.
And the environmental topicsthat the Fairchild provides us
(21:37):
as teachers in the classroom arevery topical, very up to date.
And the students always have agreat time with it because I do
it first in my classroom wherethey debate against each other
in groups, and then I pickusually the top students or the
ones that I see are reallyengaged, and I will approach
(22:01):
them individually and say, I'dlove you to come and represent
the school at this challenge,because I can take up to six
students to the actual debatechallenge.
And every year that I've takenthem after the challenge is
over, they're always like, Oh, Iwant to do this again next
year.
Of course, they don't have methe following year, so it's a
(22:22):
new set of students, but theyalways find it very engaging and
just that sense of competitionas well.
Like, you know, are theirarguments going to be better
than the other school they'recompeting against?
And like we were saying, it'simportant to be able to have
(22:43):
those difficult conversations.
A lot of times they want to beon the positive environmental
side, but they may randomly beselected to argue against the
environment or you know, the thenegative side of it.
And so they they have to thinkof it in in that way as well.
(23:04):
And so it's important, youknow, for them to see that it's
not always easy that there's theeconomic and business kind of
side of things and jobs at stakeif certain environmental laws
are are put into place.
So they get to see that realworld argument going in into
(23:29):
this challenge.
So that's this is definitelysomething that I'm very
appreciative that Fairchild hasthis for us as educators.
Lindsay Persohn (23:42):
What a wonderful interdisciplinary
learning opportunity, I think,that you've created all year
long, but certainly that you'retapping into at the Fairchild
Botanical Gardens.
The idea that even though youare teaching English, high
school English, and you're ableto bring in these STEM concepts,
which I feel like have been,you know, on everyone's mind for
(24:03):
at least the last decade or so,and being able to integrate
those ideas so seamlessly.
You know, obviously, if you'reteaching English language arts,
there is content to that.
And there is also you you mayhave to have texts that relate
to something in order to teachyour English language arts
concept.
So I love that you've been ableto bring in the environmental
(24:23):
literacies and climateliteracies as material for your
English content area.
It's it's a really greatblending of topics that I think
you know obviously has so muchmeaning to your students.
So it's really, really goodstuff, great examples.
So given the challenges oftoday's educational climate, and
you've you've touched on this abit, what message do you want
(24:46):
other teachers to hear?
Catherine Manfra (24:48):
I think it's important that as educators, we
understand that we are theprofessionals in our classroom,
and that we know that what we'redoing for our students is for
their benefit.
We're not here to harm them,we're not here to promote an
(25:09):
agenda.
We're here to open their eyes,open their minds to the
information out there, and thenlet them go from there.
At the end of the day, the theparents still have a lot of
power in their homes, right?
And I and I thinkunfortunately, because of the
(25:32):
political climate, there are alot of misconceptions that
teachers are trying to force ourbeliefs on our students, and
that's not the case at all.
I think as educators, all theeducators I know personally, we
(25:54):
genuinely care about ourstudents and our communities,
and we just want what's best forthem.
We're not out here to harm atall.
We're here to educate.
And I think for us as teachers,and and my message to other
teachers would be to not beafraid if you know that what
(26:19):
you're doing for your studentsis coming from a good place and
that you know you're therebecause you care.
Continue to do what you'redoing because we need good
teachers in the classroom, weneed educators that love what
they do.
It just feels like the more andmore time goes on, a lot of
(26:46):
good educators are leaving theclassroom because of the
political climate and justbecause of the negative
pressures that are put on us.
And and I get it, I mean,myself included, my I'm getting
to a point in my career.
(27:06):
I just finished my 22nd year ofteaching where I start to
think, you know, my mentalhealth is important, and you
know, I need to to look out forfor myself and my family, but I
also know that I want the nextgeneration to have information
(27:28):
that you know will help themgrow and is not coming from just
one side of the spectrum.
I had a conversation with astudent a couple years ago where
we were talking about somethingthat was on the news and they
were like, oh, I don't know why,you know, we're even talking
(27:48):
about this or whatever.
And I looked at them and Isaid, but listen, if we don't
have these conversations in ourclassrooms, how are you going to
go out into the real world andknow how to carry on these
difficult conversations?
We can't avoid having theseconversations.
(28:10):
We have to be able tounderstand one another.
And a lot of times it's justbeing okay to say, I agree to
disagree, and that's all right.
But not, you know, not havingthose conversations or avoiding
those conversations is nothelpful.
(28:31):
So as teachers, I would say,you know, do what you do because
you care and because you lovewhat you do.
And you know, you may not reachall the students, you may not
reach all the parents, but youyou will reach those and you
(28:51):
will make impacts that willripple.
And that's what our our jobsare.
Lindsay Persohn (28:59):
Yeah, I think that's a really a really
beautiful way to think about it.
And I do think there are manyfolks who get into teaching in
order to support others, right?
And to to pass knowledge andcritical thinking on to a next
generation.
There was something else youwere you were talking about when
it comes to these contentioustopics, and sometimes I think
(29:20):
teachers may feel like they needto shy away.
But I think the the thingthat's so important to
acknowledge is that oftentimeswhen we do get into a
conversation with studentsaround a topic that could be
seen as contentious, we areoften following their lead,
right?
We are often we are often goingin a direction that our
(29:41):
students wanted to go.
And so, you know, I think thatthat's also part of the good
work of teaching is that you,you know, you follow what your
students have on their minds aswell.
So yeah.
Well, Catherine, I thank you somuch for spending some time
with me today and for sharingthe great work that you're doing
in your classroom.
And thanks so much for thinkingabout climate and environmental
(30:03):
literacies with me.
Catherine Manfra (30:05):
Thank you again, Lindsay.
All right, have a great day.
Lindsay Persohn (30:11):
By centering teachers' experiences and
creativity, the Stories to LiveBy collective reimagines
literacy education as a powerfulway to engage with the climate
crisis.
Together, members of thiscollective are showing how
stories and teaching practicesrooted in place can help
communities respond to climatechange while nurturing hope,
(30:32):
justice, and resilience forfuture generations.
If you have an interest injoining this group, please reach
out to Dr.
Alexandra Panos, AssociateProfessor of Literacy Studies at
the University of South Floridaat ampanos@ usf.edu.
That's ampanos@usf.edu.
Education research has a problem.
The work of brilliantresearchers often doesn't reach
the practice of brilliantteachers.
Over the years, we've alsotalked about how the work of
brilliant teachers often doesnot inform the work of education
researchers.
In this special series ofClassroom Caffeine, in
collaboration with the Storiesto Live by Collective, we
(00:32):
highlight this group of K-12teachers from across the state
of Florida and former teachersnow in higher education who are
working together to sense- makeand take action.
We talk with educators andresearchers who are working
together to explore how literacyteaching can respond to the
climate crisis.
Since 2021, they have gatheredin person and online to write,
(00:55):
make art, share stories, andreflect on how climate change is
shaping our classrooms andcommunities.
Supported by grants andpartnerships, they hold regular
workshops and virtual meetings,creating space for teachers to
learn from one another whilenavigating challenges like book
bans, censorship laws, and therealities of living through
major hurricanes.
(01:15):
Through this work, the group isstudying how teachers use
stories, place-based activities,and multimodal composing to
bring climate change intoEnglish language arts
classrooms.
Their collaborative researchasks, how do teachers tell
stories about climate change?
How do they navigate thepolitical, social, and
environmental pressures of theirschools?
And how can they build newliteracies that prepare young
(01:38):
people for more just and livablefutures?
In each episode of this specialseries, we talk with a
collaborator in the Stories toLive By collective about their
experiences, connections, andlearning through this work
together.
In this Stories to Live Byepisode, Catherine Monfra talks
to us about her passion forsupporting students to
(01:58):
understand the environmentalimpact of their everyday
choices.
Catherine is a Florida native.
Born in Hialeah, a suburb ofMiami with a predominantly
Hispanic community, she nowlives in the Kendall area just
south of Miami.
She has seen Miami-Dade Countycontinue to expand westward
since her childhood, includingencroachment on the Florida
(02:20):
Everglades.
The Florida Everglades areecologically significant in
their role as a subtropicalwilderness, a habitat for many
threatened and endangeredspecies, and a provider of flood
control, water filtration, anda freshwater supply for millions
of people.
After teaching all levels ofhigh school English in public
(02:41):
schools in Miami-Dade County for22 years, Catherine now teaches
at Palmer Trinity School, anindependent private school.
Additionally, Catherine is apart of the Junior League of
Miami, a women's group thatserves and focuses on women's
and children's issues in thecommunity from education to
safety.
She became a part of theStories to Live By project by
(03:03):
answering an initial onlinesurvey of teachers that
incorporate environmental topicsinto their curriculum.
Catherine offers insights intoteaching practices and her
thinking around bringing climateliteracies and environmental
education into her Englishlanguage arts classroom.
So pour a cup of your favoritedrink and join me, your host,
(03:25):
Lindsay Persohn, for thisspecial series of Classroom
Caffeine.
Stories to live by that aresure to energize your thinking
and your teaching practice.
Catherine, thank you forjoining me.
Welcome to the show.
Catherine Manfra (03:38):
Oh, thank you so much for having me, Lindsay.
Lindsay Persohn (03:41):
So, from your own experiences, will you share
one or two moments that informyour thinking about climate
literacies?
Catherine Manfra (03:49):
So for me, it really started in elementary
school with watching shows likeCaptain Planet, the cartoon, and
I don't know, it just reallyimpacted me.
I was one of those studentsthat whenever there was some
kind of project related to EarthDay or the environment or
(04:13):
anything like that, I was alwaysvery much engaged because even
though I'm not much of anoutdoorsy person, like I don't
really do the camping thing, butI do realize how important our
environment is and how we needto, you know, just take care of
this place because we live on afinite planet that at some
(04:37):
point, you know, is is going togive, and we're the ones
responsible for taking care ofit.
So then when I became a highschool English teacher, whenever
I could fit in environmentaltexts or do environmental
literature, I would, you know,find a way to put it into my
(05:00):
curriculum so that my studentscould also be engaged in that.
And I think the the currentgeneration of students I have do
recognize that, you know, thisis an issue that we need to
address sooner rather thanlater.
Lindsay Persohn (05:19):
I think that's been my experience also, is the
the generation coming up.
I think even in theirlifetimes, they feel like
they've experienced effects ofthe climate changing.
And for them, it's not a matterthat's up for debate.
I think you know, they they dosee the effects in their own
lives.
And I think there's nothingthat shapes your thinking more
(05:40):
than our own personalexperiences.
Catherine Manfra (05:42):
Yeah.
My daughter, who's 16 now, wehave conversations about it, and
you know, she gets verypassionate about how she doesn't
understand how there's peoplethat could, you know, call it a
hoax or or say that this isn'treal.
Because, like you said, even inher 16 years, like she'll point
(06:07):
out, like, mom, I don'tremember the summers being this
unbearable, or I don't rememberthe thunderstorms, you know,
being this bad, where it'salmost like not mini hurricane,
but like a mini tropical storm,like pops out of nowhere.
So yeah, it's definitely hereand and the way I handle my
(06:31):
classroom is I believe that I amhere to share information with
my students and give them accessto the information.
And then it's their decision,you know, what they do with
that.
Do they want to go ahead and,you know, do their own deeper
dive and learn more?
(06:53):
Do they want to get involved inthe community in ways that help
the environment?
I just give them the resourcesand then let them go from there.
Lindsay Persohn (07:04):
Yeah, that's a I think it's a very smart
approach because it does leteveryone think about issues from
their own lens in an informedway, right?
Through those resources and andtheir own experiences.
So, what do you want listenersto know about your work related
to climate literacies?
Catherine Manfra (07:25):
So, in in my classroom, I think it's
important to share my personalexperiences when it comes to the
environment, whether that'swhat I do in my own time, you
know, doing beach cleanups, youknow, the little things
recycling or composting, or justeven being out in nature and
(07:48):
writing about it, having thosemoments of just appreciating,
you know, what we have rightnow, whether it's sitting by a
lake or listening to the oceanwaves, you know, all of that
stuff I think is important.
And so I share thoseexperiences with my students.
(08:10):
And then it's going into youknow reading pieces that are
related to the environment.
There's so much poetry thattouches upon the environment and
nature, and I specifically havebeen using "The Story of More"
by Hope Jahren the last severalyears in my classroom.
(08:33):
And I typically use it aroundApril, which is when Earth Day
is, and so I've developed acurriculum using that novel.
And so I'll have the studentswe read it in class, and then I
give them a culminating project,and and the project has has
(08:55):
changed over the years.
The first time I did it, I hadthem create science boards where
they would during the lunchperiod go into the the lunchroom
and share what they learnedwith their fellow classmates and
schoolmates from around theschool and just kind of talk
(09:17):
with the students about thatparticular book is broken into
sections.
So there's a section about theocean, a section about food
production, a section about thethe earth itself, and so each of
the groups would get adifferent section of the book to
(09:38):
talk about.
So, that was the first coupleyears I did different variations
of that.
And then this past year, I hadstudents create a PSA, a one one
to one and a half minute PSAthat they shared with the class.
And then, of course, I toldthem if they wanted to upload it
on YouTube, they could.
(09:58):
And some of their videos oraudio recordings were very
creative.
One of the students createdlike a spoken word poem based on
what she learned from the book.
There were several thatcreated, you know, videos of
animals and just general imagesof the earth and talking about
(10:23):
ways that they could, you know,help.
Because I think one of the mostimportant things I share with
the students is that any littledecision that they make can make
a difference.
I don't want them to just throwtheir hands in the air and say,
well, what I do doesn't make adifference because it does.
If they decide to throw theirwater bottle, their plastic
(10:48):
water bottle or their can ofsoda in the recycle bin instead
of the general trash can, that'sgonna make a difference.
It's when they get this ideathat it's not gonna help at all,
this defeatism, if you will,that I'm trying to get them out
(11:10):
of.
And I think most of my studentsdefinitely do feel like they
can make a difference.
So that's that's kind of whereI'm at in my classroom.
Lindsay Persohn (11:22):
And Catherine, this is such, I mean, it's such
a positive teaching practice ingeneral, right?
To help our students understandthat their actions do, in fact,
matter, what they think mattersand what they do matters.
And the way that you've relatedthat to a book that you all
read together and a follow-upproject, I think I can just only
(11:42):
imagine the impact that thathas on your students for today,
but also in the long run, right?
I think that's it's just such acritical message to share with
young people, really withanyone, that what they do does
have an impact on themselves,you know, and the way they feel
about things, but also oneveryone around them and
(12:02):
ultimately, you know, theirenvironment and as you pointed
out, the planet that we allshare.
So what a what a great way toutilize a story.
And this is one I have not readyet.
So I'm gonna have to add thisto my my reading list, "The
Story of More." Because yeah, II can imagine there's so many
different ways that projectscould go.
Catherine Manfra (12:23):
Yeah.
The first book I that I read byHope Jahren was called Lab
Girl.
Her writing, because a lot oftimes scientific writing is very
dry or boring or technical fora lot of people.
And so the way she writes isjust so clear.
(12:47):
I mean, I even when I firstintroduced the book with my own
students, I tell them, I'm like,you're going to read this book
and you're going to be able tounderstand it in such a way
because she writes for theaverage person to be able to
understand what's going on.
(13:09):
It's, you know, not, I mean,she does use technical terms and
the science and everything, butit's in such a way that you can
see, you can feel what's goingon and digest the information in
a way that's not boring, that'snot so dense.
(13:31):
And so I think it's it's agreat book to use with the
students.
And and I, you know, the firstwhen we read the introduction
together and and we finish ittogether, I look at them and and
I ask them, I'm like, you know,was there anything in that
introduction that you didn'tunderstand or that was so
(13:54):
technical that that you didn'tget it?
Or was it so clear that you'relike, wow, like I get it.
I understand what she's talkingabout.
And and they all they're like,yeah, I want to keep reading.
and that's such a wonderfulthing when the students are
like, yeah, this isn't boring,because unfortunately, a lot of
(14:16):
times the literature that wehave to cover is not easy for
the students.
And so when when you get apiece where it's easily
digestible, it just it makes itmore enjoyable.
And then seeing them be excitedabout continuing to read and
(14:36):
wanting to read what she has tosay really just brings it home.
Lindsay Persohn (14:43):
Yeah, that accessibility of a text is is so
critical.
And for it to contain importantand easy to understand
information on top of beingengaging, it sounds like it's
just a great choice for youraudience.
Yeah.
So let me ask you kind of afollow-up question to that,
Catherine.
So you participated in theStories to Live by project, and
(15:06):
I'm wondering how that may havehelped to further or shape your
thinking about how you talkabout these topics, you know,
how you might inspire highschool age learners to maybe
continue thinking on this path,or, you know, what do they do
with those ideas?
I guess I'm just wondering howthe project has helped you to
(15:27):
sort of further your ownthinking and your teaching.
Catherine Manfra (15:30):
Well, first of all, I was so grateful to be
part of this group of teachersfrom around the state.
And it just made me feel likeI'm not alone in my, you know,
wanting to include these typesof topics in my classroom
because it does feel sometimeslike we're being restricted in
(15:55):
what we can teach and not teach.
And so this group reaffirmedthat the things I'm doing in my
classroom with environmentalliteracy is important and that
there are others that are doingsimilar things.
And so I was very grateful tobe able to add my own ideas with
(16:19):
the other teachers, learningnew ways to, you know, share
environmental projects with mystudents and just kind of have
this springboard of working withothers and and sharing ideas.
I mean, it was each time wemet, whether it was virtually or
(16:39):
in person, I just I felt asense of of community and a
sense of, you know, we're we'redoing the right thing and we're
doing something in ourclassrooms that is going to
benefit our students from, youknow, just sharing a different,
(17:02):
I mean, even the children'sbooks that we would receive in
our meetings together, I sharedit with my high school students
because honestly, I still thinkthat high school students are
children at heart and they loveto be read too.
And so I would read the thechildren's books that I received
(17:24):
from the group and you know,just just kind of have a little
moment with them to you knowremember what it's like to be a
kid.
And you know, I think the mostimportant thing from the project
was just learning a variety ofways to incorporate in our
(17:47):
classrooms the ideas of you knowenvironmentalism in general.
It's not something - a lot oftimes, we know many of our
colleagues stay away from thegeneral, you know, environmental
topic because of the politicsinvolved - but we were like, you
(18:10):
know, this is important andthere are ways to get around it,
you know, especially like ifit's important to get the
parents to understand what we'redoing in our classrooms and the
students as well.
So those were the kind ofconversations that we had, and
(18:37):
we would walk away feeling like,okay, you know, we can do this,
and we don't have to be afraidof what we're doing because in
the end we are teaching, whichis our job as educators, and
we're doing it in a way that isnot pushing any particular
(18:59):
agenda, we're just sharing theinformation and where the
students go from there is up tothem.
And also, as I mentioned, thethe parents.
Lindsay Persohn (19:14):
I think there's obviously so much to learn just
by inviting criticalperspectives, regardless of what
the issue is.
But whenever you, whenever yourstudents know that you're
talking about something thatcould be seen as contentious in
some circles, I think wheneveryou can push them to say, well,
here is information.
What are we going to do withit?
What questions do you haveabout it?
(19:34):
What kind of sense are youmaking of it?
And I think encouraging thateven healthy debate within our
own classrooms, it meets a lotof educational goals, right?
Of you know, supporting civicengagement and the idea of
collaborating with others andyou know, civil conversations
(19:54):
and discourse.
I think all of those things arejust so important and maybe
even more important now thanthey have been within my or your
teaching career, you know?
Catherine Manfra (20:06):
Exactly.
And I've also been I'm in theMiami-Dade County system, and
I'm lucky enough that we havethe Fairchild Tropical Gardens,
botanical gardens here.
And for I think it's over 15years now, they've been holding
(20:27):
an annual Fairchild Challengethat elementary, middle, and
high school students canparticipate in with their
teachers.
And each challenge, you know,it's gone through changes over
the years, but it's a programthat you can fit into your
curriculum.
They provide, you know, whatstandards are being met by these
(20:50):
challenges with our students.
STEM is definitely a big areathat they want to promote in our
classroom.
So it also, you know, allows usto incorporate that.
So Fairchild, I've been doingit for I think close to 10
years.
Though the main one that I'vebeen participating in is the
(21:13):
environmental debate challenge.
And I do that with my APlanguage and composition
students because they have tolearn how to argue and argue
well, have a line of reasoningwhen they're, you know, coming
up with their ideas.
And the environmental topicsthat the Fairchild provides us
(21:37):
as teachers in the classroom arevery topical, very up to date.
And the students always have agreat time with it because I do
it first in my classroom wherethey debate against each other
in groups, and then I pickusually the top students or the
ones that I see are reallyengaged, and I will approach
(22:01):
them individually and say, I'dlove you to come and represent
the school at this challenge,because I can take up to six
students to the actual debatechallenge.
And every year that I've takenthem after the challenge is
over, they're always like, Oh, Iwant to do this again next
year.
Of course, they don't have methe following year, so it's a
(22:22):
new set of students, but theyalways find it very engaging and
just that sense of competitionas well.
Like, you know, are theirarguments going to be better
than the other school they'recompeting against?
And like we were saying, it'simportant to be able to have
(22:43):
those difficult conversations.
A lot of times they want to beon the positive environmental
side, but they may randomly beselected to argue against the
environment or you know, the thenegative side of it.
And so they they have to thinkof it in in that way as well.
(23:04):
And so it's important, youknow, for them to see that it's
not always easy that there's theeconomic and business kind of
side of things and jobs at stakeif certain environmental laws
are are put into place.
So they get to see that realworld argument going in into
(23:29):
this challenge.
So that's this is definitelysomething that I'm very
appreciative that Fairchild hasthis for us as educators.
Lindsay Persohn (23:42):
What a wonderful interdisciplinary
learning opportunity, I think,that you've created all year
long, but certainly that you'retapping into at the Fairchild
Botanical Gardens.
The idea that even though youare teaching English, high
school English, and you're ableto bring in these STEM concepts,
which I feel like have been,you know, on everyone's mind for
(24:03):
at least the last decade or so,and being able to integrate
those ideas so seamlessly.
You know, obviously, if you'reteaching English language arts,
there is content to that.
And there is also you you mayhave to have texts that relate
to something in order to teachyour English language arts
concept.
So I love that you've been ableto bring in the environmental
(24:23):
literacies and climateliteracies as material for your
English content area.
It's it's a really greatblending of topics that I think
you know obviously has so muchmeaning to your students.
So it's really, really goodstuff, great examples.
So given the challenges oftoday's educational climate, and
you've you've touched on this abit, what message do you want
(24:46):
other teachers to hear?
Catherine Manfra (24:48):
I think it's important that as educators, we
understand that we are theprofessionals in our classroom,
and that we know that what we'redoing for our students is for
their benefit.
We're not here to harm them,we're not here to promote an
(25:09):
agenda.
We're here to open their eyes,open their minds to the
information out there, and thenlet them go from there.
At the end of the day, the theparents still have a lot of
power in their homes, right?
And I and I thinkunfortunately, because of the
(25:32):
political climate, there are alot of misconceptions that
teachers are trying to force ourbeliefs on our students, and
that's not the case at all.
I think as educators, all theeducators I know personally, we
(25:54):
genuinely care about ourstudents and our communities,
and we just want what's best forthem.
We're not out here to harm atall.
We're here to educate.
And I think for us as teachers,and and my message to other
teachers would be to not beafraid if you know that what
(26:19):
you're doing for your studentsis coming from a good place and
that you know you're therebecause you care.
Continue to do what you'redoing because we need good
teachers in the classroom, weneed educators that love what
they do.
It just feels like the more andmore time goes on, a lot of
(26:46):
good educators are leaving theclassroom because of the
political climate and justbecause of the negative
pressures that are put on us.
And and I get it, I mean,myself included, my I'm getting
to a point in my career.
(27:06):
I just finished my 22nd year ofteaching where I start to
think, you know, my mentalhealth is important, and you
know, I need to to look out forfor myself and my family, but I
also know that I want the nextgeneration to have information
(27:28):
that you know will help themgrow and is not coming from just
one side of the spectrum.
I had a conversation with astudent a couple years ago where
we were talking about somethingthat was on the news and they
were like, oh, I don't know why,you know, we're even talking
(27:48):
about this or whatever.
And I looked at them and Isaid, but listen, if we don't
have these conversations in ourclassrooms, how are you going to
go out into the real world andknow how to carry on these
difficult conversations?
We can't avoid having theseconversations.
(28:10):
We have to be able tounderstand one another.
And a lot of times it's justbeing okay to say, I agree to
disagree, and that's all right.
But not, you know, not havingthose conversations or avoiding
those conversations is nothelpful.
(28:31):
So as teachers, I would say,you know, do what you do because
you care and because you lovewhat you do.
And you know, you may not reachall the students, you may not
reach all the parents, but youyou will reach those and you
(28:51):
will make impacts that willripple.
And that's what our our jobsare.
Lindsay Persohn (28:59):
Yeah, I think that's a really a really
beautiful way to think about it.
And I do think there are manyfolks who get into teaching in
order to support others, right?
And to to pass knowledge andcritical thinking on to a next
generation.
There was something else youwere you were talking about when
it comes to these contentioustopics, and sometimes I think
(29:20):
teachers may feel like they needto shy away.
But I think the the thingthat's so important to
acknowledge is that oftentimeswhen we do get into a
conversation with studentsaround a topic that could be
seen as contentious, we areoften following their lead,
right?
We are often we are often goingin a direction that our
(29:41):
students wanted to go.
And so, you know, I think thatthat's also part of the good
work of teaching is that you,you know, you follow what your
students have on their minds aswell.
So yeah.
Well, Catherine, I thank you somuch for spending some time
with me today and for sharingthe great work that you're doing
in your classroom.
And thanks so much for thinkingabout climate and environmental
(30:03):
literacies with me.
Catherine Manfra (30:05):
Thank you again, Lindsay.
All right, have a great day.
Lindsay Persohn (30:11):
By centering teachers' experiences and
creativity, the Stories to LiveBy collective reimagines
literacy education as a powerfulway to engage with the climate
crisis.
Together, members of thiscollective are showing how
stories and teaching practicesrooted in place can help
communities respond to climatechange while nurturing hope,
(30:32):
justice, and resilience forfuture generations.
If you have an interest injoining this group, please reach
out to Dr.
Alexandra Panos, AssociateProfessor of Literacy Studies at
the University of South Floridaat ampanos@ usf.edu.
That's ampanos@usf.edu.
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