Save The Earth
Tips For Youth Workers 
The following suggestions will be helpful for Youth Workers utilizing the Save the Earth Now content.
Glossary of Philanthropic Terms
Activities for Developing Life-Long Habits of Giving and Serving
Research shows that philanthropic behaviors can be “taught.” Parents, teachers and youth-serving leaders can serve as exemplary role models. The wider the diversity of teachers in a child’s life (that is: parents, youth leaders, religious leaders, school teachers, etc.), the more likely the lesson is to be learned.* Learning life-long habits of giving, serving and advocacy will be most effective when youth are encouraged and supported with a consistent message at home, in school and in community involvement activities.
Included in the youth activity section are meaningful, fun and “ready-to-use” materials that will engage youth in the most basic and rewarding of democratic principles—the giving of “time, talent and treasure” to benefit the common good.
These youth activities are in two themes:
Roots of Philanthropy
Environment and Philanthropy
It is recommend that an introduction to philanthropy, through using an activity from the Roots of Philanthropy theme, be used in preparation for activities from the Environment and Philanthropy theme (environmental stewardship). The environmental activities will build upon those concepts presented in the introductory theme. An “Activity-at-a-Glance” sidebar provides the necessary information concerning time, materials, setting and sequence for ease in planning and implementing the activity with your Youth group. Philanthropy content benchmarks, from the Philanthropy
Theme Framework created by Learning to Give, are included in each activity to clarify specific learning goals.
Some activities were selected from Learning to Give’s K-12 lesson plans and re-designed for use in youth worker settings. These activities will refer directly to the original Learning to Give lesson plan and point out other lesson possibilities in that same topic area. Community Partnerships with Youth* contributed material from their youth philanthropy handbooks. Many of the lessons have plans for hands on activities, or resources that can be used without the academic content.
Youth in Philanthropy Activities - “Best Practices”
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Read each activity carefully before implementing it. Visualize how it will work and make sure you have all of the materials needed for a successful experience.
- Be intentional in your instruction to produce specific outcomes. Be sure you have a clear understanding of the purpose, where you want to go, and how you will get there.
- Empower youth to take leading roles and support them in fulfilling their role to the best of their ability. The more ownership youth have, the more engaged they will be, the more relevant the
activity becomes, and the more apt they will be to put it into practice.
- Use “facilitative training techniques”. Facilitative training is training that is based on the facilit
ator being able to bring out the best from the group. In facilitative training, the participants should be
talking and contributing more than the facilitator(s). The facilitator should serve as a guide.
- Utilize the “right to pass”. This is empowering for your group and will actually increase participation as the group feels they have the control over when and how they choose to participate. You can always come back to someone later and use positive techniques to draw members out.
- Practice the processing questions in advance. Processing questions enable you to reinforce the major points from the activity. Processing questions should be at the conclusion to summarize and can also be used throughout the activity. It is better to have a few well-crafted questions relevant to your group rather than too many.
- Be affirming, encouraging and show appreciation. Build on strengths and assets.
- Be creative. Use a variety of communication techniques such as: media, storytelling, movement, art, role-playing, and community field trips.
- Know your audience and be sensitive to their situations. Select activities that will work well with your group and make adjustments as needed. Flexibility is key—but still must be thought through and intentional.
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Have fun!
Glossary of Philanthropic Terms For Use with Youth
Advocacy: to act or speak in favor of a cause.
Common good: considering what is best for everyone, not just a few, in organizations, schools, family situations, and the community.
Conservation: to protect the community and its environment from waste or loss.
Democratic values: a system of beliefs and actions that gives all people a voice, and is founded on the practice of equality of opportunity, rights, and treatment. The United States was founded on these principles.
Idealism: striving to achieve one’s ideals.
Motivations: the reasons a person engages in a particular activity.
Personal mission: a statement of a person’s beliefs and values and what one hopes to accomplish in life.
Philanthropist: a person who gives of his/her time, talent, and treasure and/or take private citizen action for the sake of another or for the common good of the community.
Philanthropy: caring and sharing by taking action for the common good.
Responsibility: being able to think and act while knowing the consequences, both good and bad, of the actions you take.
Serial Reciprocity: philanthropic acts that encourage other philanthropic acts.
Talents: those special gifts which are improved upon and practiced; such as musical or artistic ability, and or writing skills.
Values: those things that are very important to us and help us choose our actions.
Volunteer: one who gives freely of his or her time, energy, or talent on behalf of people and places in need.
Bently, Richard & Nissan, Luana. The Roots of Giving and Serving. Indiana University Center on Philanthropy, Indianapolis. 1996. Text available at: Community Partnerships with Youth, Inc. www.cpyinc.org