Dozens of Michigan teachers were some of the attendees at the 2013 Great Lakes Conference at Michigan State University back in March, and one of the most important topics of discussion was the current and future need for improving Great Lakes literacy.

From the MSU office of extension: 

“At the luncheon, educators learned about upcoming professional development opportunities relating to the Great Lakes, and shared their best practices in Great Lakes education, as well as their priority needs relating to advancing Great Lakes literacy in the classroom. 

So with the goal of advancing Great Lakes literacy in mind, what were some of their best practices and needs that emerged from the teacher discussion? The best practices clustered around five themes: 1) curriculum, 2) place-based education, 3) data in the classroom, 4) hands-on learning, and 5) cross-curriculum lessons…”