Audit

Download the UNESCO Curriculum Audit as a pdf.

The above (and below) link provides a download checklist that is offered as a first step towards developing your preschool curriculum development plans.  The checklist identifies the learning foundations that will support children when they the address the Age 5+ provisions of the UNESCO (2024) Greening Schools Curriculum.  As a diagnostic tool it may be  applied to identify priority areas for your curriculum development.  GECCO, in association with OMEP (see below),  also provide aligned support, training and accreditation for the development for these areas of the curriculum through their Early Childhood Education for Sustainable Citizenship Award scheme.  The OMEP ESC Award is aligned with the UNESCO (2024) Green School Quality Standard, it provides materials to support learning in the home and outside the preschool environment, and it  includes progressively applied Curriculum Audits to structure the development of the preschool curriculum, for governance, facilities and operations, teaching and learning, and community engagement at Bronze, Silver and Gold levels.

Download the Curriculum Audit as a pdf.

See also online:
https://gecco.org.uk/omep/

Hindmarch and Boyd (Eds.) (2021) A Path made in the Walking , OMEP Updates

A Call for Preschool Partners

OMEP support is available in over 60 Countries. Contact your local Committee here:  https://omepworld.org/about-us-3/

UNESCO Greening Schools Curriculum	UNESCO Objective for 5-8 year olds	Early Years Foundational Knowledge	Blog Page
Climate Science
1.1 Weather, Climate and Climate Change	Key idea: “Weather” describes daily experience, while “climate” describes weather patterns over many years	e.g. Identifying different local seasonal weather conditions, and also the different climates of countries around the world.	Weather and Climate
1.2 Greenhouse Gases	Key idea: Sunshine heats the earth’s surface.	e.g. Identifying the effect of the sun heating  playground furniture, surfaces, trees etc.,  and the extra warmth that we feel when entering a conservatory or greenhouse.	Sunshine
1.3 The Carbon Cycle	Key idea: The plants and animal life need clean air to help them grow.	e.g. Observing reduced variety and damage to leaves in different locations.	The Importance of Clean Air
1.4 The Water Cycle	Key idea: Life for humans, animals and plants depends on clean water.	e.g. identifying when plants need watering. Caring for the needs of animals and wildlife such as water for birds.	Clean Water
1.5 Avoiding Pollution and Conserving Resources	Key idea: Human activity affects air quality and water quality.	e.g. Identifying vehicle soot on street signs, Involving the children in litter picking activities.	Pollution
1.6 Renewable Energy	Key idea: Fossil fuels and renewable energy	e.g. identifying fossil fuels and alternative renewable energy supplies from wind and water	Solar, Wind and water Energy
Ecosystems and Biodiversity
2.1. Natural Environments: Ecosystems and Biodiversity (Land and Ocean)	Key idea: Ecosystems are animals and plants in interaction with each other.	e.g. identifying animals that eat other animals, and some that eat plants.	Ecological Interdependence

2.2 The Evolution of Biodiversity Through Time and in the Future	Key idea: Some animals used to live on our planet and are now no longer here (such as dinosaurs)	e.g. Learning about dinosaurs and more recently extinct and threatened species near where they live.	Extinctions
2.3. Ecosystems, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services	Key idea: We need nature	e.g. learning how the natural environment provides resources for food, clothes, houses, etc.	We All Depend on nature
2.4. Human Relation to Nature: Domestication and Agriculture	Key idea: The food we eat comes from plants and animals.	e.g. Identifying different sources and production methods of food.	Where Food Comes From
2.5. Human-Induced Biodiversity Loss and its Consequences	Key idea: The impact of humans on biodiversity	e.g. Comparing the wild life populations of cities, rural and wilderness areas.	Human Role and Impact
2.6. Reconnecting with Nature and Protecting Nature	Key idea: Human protection of nature is essential	e.g. Stewardship activities in support of local wildlife, providing bird tables, bat and bird boxes, bug hotels etc.	Human Role and Impact
Resilience Building
3.1. Social Impacts of Climate Change	Key idea: Weather patterns and climate affects us	e.g. identifying the actions to be taken in different weather conditions, e.g.  seeking shade and providing extra drinking water during a heat wave, or holding our hat tightly, or tying it around the neck in a strong wind.	Climate Health and Safety
3.2. Navigating Climate Impacts:  Strategies for Safety and Resilience	Key idea: Climate change causes extreme weather	e.g. Making preparations before a storm, and participating as a team in emergency drills for fire and floods	Safety and Resilience
3.3. Climate Anxiety and Constructive Coping	Key idea: It is important to express our emotions	e.g. Learning to share feelings with family, teacher and friends, learning to identify and label basic emotions (happy, sad, scared, angry) in story books and in others.	Climate Anxiety and Agency
3.4. Strength in Interconnectedness	Key idea: Humans and other living things are dependent on the natural world	e.g. participating in conservation and sustainability activities that connect students with nature such as making compost and examining the interaction of living organisms under the soil.	Sustainable Citizenship
3.5. Urgency and Community Action	Key idea: Taking climate action is urgent.	e.g. Invite community leaders into the preschool to explain their climate actions. Create real or pretend sustainable bazaars, action plans, silent marches, etc	Community Action
3.6. Tackling Climate Mis/Disinformation	Key idea: We learn from many different information sources	e.g. Support the child in their critical awareness of the adult world: Teach them, if they are ever lost, that they should ask another parent with a child for help, and that they should give them their full name.	Information and Disinformation
Climate Justice
4.1. Contemporary Manifestations	Key idea: Climate events different groups in different ways	e.g. encouraging support and empathy for different groups such as the elderly, those in more vulnerable environments locally and abroad	Helping Each Other
4.2. Social Determinants	Key idea: Who we are and the circumstances that we live in can create more negative experiences	e.g. encouraging support and empathy for groups and individuals treated unfairly	Reducing Waste by Giving and Sharing
4.3. Historical Economic and Political Processes	Key idea: Human actions in the past have long-lasting positive or negative impacts	e.g. Celebrating past actions such as when all the countries came together and agreed to tackle climate change, and local actions such as the day solar panels were installed on the public library.	Celebrating Sustainable Progress
4.4. Transformed Futures	Key idea: We all have a role to play	e.g. involving the children in awareness raising or practical campaigns in supporting environmental sustainability	A Role to Play
Post-Carbon Economies
5.1. Economic Growth and Development	Key idea: Resources are essential and often scarce	e.g. Identifying the difference between needs and wants and the importance of sharing.	Needs and wants
5.2. Circular Economy and Everyday Life	Key idea: There are better ways to deal with things that you no longer need	e.g. Involve the children in recycling, upcycling,  reuse, repair, giving, and sharing activities.	Reducing Waste through Recycling and Upcycling Reducing Waste through Repairing Reducing waste through Giving and Sharing
5.3. Climate Change and Economics	Key idea: Different weather conditions can affect people’s daily lives.	e.g. identifying the effects of extreme weather on the availability of food items.	Climate Health and Safety
5.4. Energy Consumption and Carbon Emissions	Key idea: Energy is required in everyday life	e.g. Learning about energy sources and the importance of reducing electricity consumption.	Energy Consumption and Reduction
5.5. Our Roles in a Post-Carbon Economy	Key idea: Care for our environment will contribute to our individual and social wellbeing	e.g. Celebrating the sustainable actions of the preschool, local. National and international community.	A Role to Play
Sustainable Lifestyles
6.1. Engagement with Nature	Key idea: Human beings have an innate need to connect with nature	e.g. Promoting a love of nature and regular experience of its positive impact.	Embracing Nature
6.2. Renewable Energy Use	Key idea: There are different sources of renewable energy existing naturally (such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, marine and bioenergy) as an effective alternative to fossil fuels	e.g. Identifying, painting, drawing and modelling renewable energy technologies.	Solar, Wind and Water Energy
6.3. Responsible Consumption	Key idea: Material possessions do not bring a lifetime of happiness.	e.g.  Making lists of needs and wants, learning about overconsumption.  Playing with upcycled and recycled items	Needs and Wants
6.4. Sustainable Living Spaces	Key idea: Everyone needs sustainable living spaces	e.g. Learning about clever indigenous housing designs from around the world	Weather and Climate
6.5. Sustainable Mobility	Key idea: There are different forms of transportation.	e.g. Producing a tally of the forms of transport used by children and staff, identifying more sustainable alternatives	Transportation
6.6. Sustainable Diets	Key idea: Some people do not have enough food while others eat too much.	e.g. Supporting campaigns for healthy diets and for famine relief, donating food to food banks, at harvest festival.	Sustainable Diets
6.7. Sustainable Waste Practices	Key idea: Sustainable waste practices aim to keep materials in use for as long as possible	e.g. Teach children to reuse things instead of always trying to buy new items.  Second-hand swop shops for books, coats, boots, toys.  Donating outgrown clothes to others or to charities.	Reducing Waste through Reusing