TIPS FOR TEACHERS AND LIBRARIANS:
John Muir, Wilderness Protector
- John Muir had an extremely hard childhood, with little opportunity for formal education. Read the first two chapters out loud. Young readers and listeners can think about and compare their childhoods to Muir's.
- Study John Muir in conjunction with turn-of-the-century California history.
- Study Muir's contributions to wilderness preservation, including the founding of the Sierra Club, in conjunction with Earth Week. During this week, celebrate his birthday on April 21st.
- The John Muir Exhibit at www.sierraclub.org/john_muir_exhibit/ has many sources of information and references.
- Study websites for California's Yosemite (a web index at www.yosemite.ca.us/), Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (www.nps.gov/seki/) or Muir Woods (www.nps.gov/muwo/) to learn about places Muir wrote about and loved. Visit any of these spots.
- Visit the Muir House in Martinez, California, a National Historic Site, where Muir lived with his wife and daughters. The website is www.nps.gov/jomu/.
- Discuss Muir's role as an activist. What would have happened if national parks had not been preserved? What would John Muir think about the environment today?
- Get his video or invite Lee Stetson to your school to do a live portrayal of John Muir, or encourage your students to see his show in Yosemite Valley.
- Read selected writings of John Muir:
Stickeen, retold by Donnell Rubay, is a wonderful picture book published by Dawn Publications is about his adventures in Alaska with a small dog named Stickeen.
Bring John Muir In His Own Words, a collection of short quotes compiled by Peter Browning (Great West Books, 1988), to the classroom. Have students pick a quote and discuss the meaning.
- John Muir was named one of the "100 Environmental Heroes" of the century in the November/December 1998 issue of Audubon magazine. Ask students to name others they think are environmental heroes and why.
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