Why Lawns Must Die
Videos
Grades9, 10, 11, 12Biology, History
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Provided by Our Changing Climate
What it is
- This video from Our Changing Climate provides historical context about lawns, the many ways that lawn maintenance can be damaging to our planet, and the ways that lawns are now regulated.
- The topics covered in the video include colonialism, conformity, classism, insecticides, herbicides, fertilizers, gas-powered lawnmowers, non-native grasses, monocultures, and water waste.
Teaching tips
Positives
- This video brings up valuable content that is typically overlooked, especially given that there are more acres of grass than corn grown in the United States.
- Students may also be surprised to learn how much water, fertilizer, and pesticides are sprayed onto lawns each year.
Prerequisites
- The video content ends at 9 minutes, 26 seconds. The last segment is an advertisement.
- You may have to sit through commercials to view the video.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Science classes can use this video as a hook to discuss the nitrogen cycle, water ecosystems, eutrophication, biodiversity loss, and land use changes.
- Social studies and civics classes can discuss new regulations that could prevent HOAs and cities from mandating lawns and lawn maintenance.
- Economics classes can discuss the financial impacts of regulations that require residents to maintain lawns with chemicals, equipment, and water.
From the scientist review
This resource highlights the need to reduce lawn ownership and convert lawn spaces to agricultural purposes to drive food security. This is recommended for teaching.
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