John Muir Day Study Guide

"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe."
-- John Muir, 1838-1914

The academic focus of the John Muir Day Study Guide (scroll below for each grade level) is History - Social Science.
Please see the following for additional Muir-inspired lesson plans for other academic subjects.
More Standards-Aligned John Muir Lesson Plans

Through the Eyes of John Muir:: A Multi-disciplinary Approach to Looking at our World by Janice Kelley
This curriculum, aligned to both Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards, can be applied in and outside the classroom for students to learn how to see through the eyes of John Muir - as environmental stewards, scientists, historians and advocates. Each lesson is presented within the context of John Muir's own actions. These Standards apply to grades 3 and 4. Most activities are applicable to or can be modified to meet the needs of older students.
English - Language Arts - Graphic Arts:

Power Quotes and Essay Writing (Grade Five)
Make a Nature Journal (Grades K-8)
Journal Writing with John Muir - Tips and resources for keeping a Nature Journal like John Muir, for all ages.

Science

John Muir Lesson Plans Home

The John Muir Day Study Guide was prepared to help teachers commemorate John Muir Day each April 21 with their classes. California teachers are encouraged to recognize John Muir Day by statute (see below), but people all over the world celebrate John Muir's Birthday on April 21! In addition, the guide is produced with the idea that it may be used throughout the school year, integrated with a variety of curriculum topics, to set a tone of caring about our environment. It can be used outside of California as well as within, since only the fourth grade unit is California-specific.

If you live outside of California, we suggest you use the Sixth Grade John Muir Geography Cards and the Places Important to John Muir page to find out if Muir ever traveled in your state or country, and then you can create a lesson plan for your own geographic location.

Each chapter of the John Muir Day Study Guide is available FREE for downloading in Adobe Acrobat file format (necessary for graphic-intensive pages), and in standard Web HTML (for text portions) below.

John Muir Day - April 21

Celebrating a Lifetime of Conservation

The Governor annually shall proclaim April 21st to be 'John Muir Day'

- California Government Code Section 6714.

John Muir Day:

(a) April 21 of each year is designated and set apart as John Muir Day, a day having special significance pursuant to Section 37222.
(b) On John Muir Day, all public schools and educational institutions are encouraged to conduct exercises stressing the importance that an ecologically sound natural environment plays in the quality of life for all of us, and emphasizing John Muir's significant contributions to the fostering of that awareness and the indelible mark he left on the State of California.

- California Education Code Section 37222.1/
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 241, Sec. 4. re-numbering Code from Education Code Section 37222 (a)(2) and (b)(2).)

Days having special significance:

(a) On each day designated and set apart as a day having special significance, all public schools and educational institutions are encouraged to observe that day and to conduct suitable commemorative exercises.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the exercises encouraged by subdivision (a) be integrated into the regular school program, and be conducted by the school or institution within the amount of time otherwise budgeted for educational programs.

- California Education Code Section 37222.

This guide produced under the auspices of Sierra Club California and the California Department of Education.

This updated on-line version of the Study Guide contains the instructional text from the paper document. In addition to this text, there are materials of a graphical nature that are to be used in the suggested activities. These are available in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and are linked to the appropriate units. Furthermore, there are Acrobat files for each unit -- available at the bottom of each unit page -- as well as a single file for the entire Guide. The purpose of these on-line, hyper-text documents is to give you a good idea of what's in the Study Guide. If you want to use (a unit of) the Guide, then download the PDF files that are most useful to you. (Please note - links in the PDF documents may no longer work)

Unifying Concept: John Muir, explorer, scientist, and author, studied ecosystems worldwide and expressed his views, helping establish the modern environmental movement.

2001 Update

A Note to the Teacher

Schoolwide Activities

Kindergarten - Grade 1 : John Muir: Long Ago and Now

John Muir showed he cared about nature by writing, drawing, and speaking to others.

Sort Natural Objects
Listen to Stories
Make a Booklet about John Muir

Grades 2 - 3 : John Muir: One Person Who Made a Difference

John Muir had many experiences which gave him the vision to save wilderness areas.

Make Observations
Write in Journals
Make a Booklet about John Muir

Grade 4 : John Muir in California

John Muir, an immigrant to California, encountered environmental problems and found solutions.

Read About Events in John Muir's Life
Plot Locations Important to John Muir on California Maps
- John Muir's California
  - Map of California
    ( downloads Adobe Acrobat file; file size = 101,490 bytes)
Resources for Grade 4

Grade 5 : Speaking Out for Conservation

John Muir, an immigrant to the United States, spoke out about his experiences and his visions for conservation.

Read Examples of John Muir's Work
- John Muir Power Quotes
  ( downloads Adobe Acrobat file; file size = 143,512 bytes)
Compare John Muir's Life to Our Own Lives
Write About Nature Persuasively

Grade 6 : John Muir: Around the World in 76 Years

John Muir traveled around the world to compare and contrast natural phenomena and to speak out about preserving ecosystems.

Play the "John Muir Day Game"
- John Muir Day Game Board
  ( downloads Adobe Acrobat file; file size = 215,373 bytes)
- John Muir Geography Cards
  - Clickable World Map for non-USA Geography Cards
Create a Timeline
Plot Locations Important to John Muir on a World Map