One of the great American writers, Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862) understood the intricacies of nature and man's relationship with the environment far before the environmental movement of the mid-to-late twentieth century. Born in Concord, Massachusetts, Thoreau was one of the Earth's earliest champions and shared his insights with the world through poetry and literature.Thoreau spent his life observing and writing about the natural world in which he lived, publishing numerous writings including his most famous, Walden; or, Life in the Woods. As he watched the land of his Massachusetts home being cleared to make way for agriculture and the trees used for fuel and building materials, he saw a future where conservation would become mandatory. He wrote, "Each town should have a park, or rather a primitive forest, of 500 or a thousand acres, where a stick should never be cut for fuel, a common possession forever, for instruction and recreation.
Walden Woods and Pond
Walden Woods is the site of Henry David Thoreau's two-year, two-month and two-day experiment in simple living and communion with nature while living in a small self-made house on the shore of Walden Pond. The locale of Thoreau's Walden and much of his other literary works and his scientific observations, Walden Woods encompasses 2,680 acres and is located in the towns of Concord and Lincoln, Massachusetts. Often acknowledged as the birthplace of the American conservation movement, it was largely on the basis of observations made within Walden Woods that Thoreau asserted the principle of land preservation, which ultimately became a model for our national park system.
While at Walden, Thoreau spent many hours observing the natural world and painstakingly chronicled his observations in his journal. His observations and his record of them formed the foundation for his definitive work, Walden, in which he argued for the preservation of "wildness" and of Walden Woods in particular. Walden Pond and Walden Woods served as wellsprings of inspiration for Thoreau's far-reaching philosophies and masterful literary works.
Program Synopsis
In June 1998, the Thoreau Institute opened its doors in Walden Woods, near the spot where Henry David Thoreau built a cabin and lived alone for two years, from 1845 to 1847, learning every lesson he could about the natural world and recording his observations in his journal. Since then, the ideas which were published in Walden have inspired naturalists, environmentalists, statesmen and politicians, and student activists; and his influence continues to grow. This Early Edition of ecology.com.TV, from the EcoView program library, attends the inauguration, along with President and Mrs. Clinton, recording stars Don Henley and Tony Bennett, and actor Ed Begley, Jr., to assess the growing impact of this unique American figure on the public today.
Curriculum Support
Educational programs and Resources related to Celebrating Henry may be obtained by visiting the Thoreau Institute on the Web. Ecology.com recommends some of these activities:
Grades K - 5:
Take a trip to a wooded park area.
Have students verbally identify all the different parts of nature (i.e., trees, pond or lake, grass, rocks, animals, insects, plants, flowers, etc.)
Have the students discuss what their favorite parts of nature are and why... how they feel about what they see ... and how they think nature works together (i.e., the trees makes homes for the birds, the pond for the fish and drinking water.
Then, have students identify all the things that are not part of nature (i.e., swings, tennis court, buildings, local highways, nearby houses, benches, sidewalk, streets, trash containers, cars, etc.)
Have the students discuss what they think about the things that were not placed there by nature. Are they good things, or are they/could they hurt the environment? Why do you think these things were placed there? How do they feel about these things?
Ask the students if they think nature and the things that are not nature can be helpful to each other (i.e., can sidewalks help keep people from trampling down plants, etc.).
When you return to the classroom, or for homework, ask the students to draw a picture (K-2) or write a little story (3-5) about what they learned on the trip to the park. Ask them to draw or write what was important to them.
Grades 6 - 12:
Ask students to write each day for five days about a single occurrence or event they observed that has an environmental impact (i.e., trash collection, smoke from automobile exhaust or factories, neighbors working in a garden, rain falling and washing into storm drains, etc. They should describe what they saw, what they thought was happening (i.e., where does the trash go when it is picked up), was it good, not good or makes no difference, and how they feel about it.
After the five-day observation period, ask the students to bring to school pictures they have drawn, photos or other illustration of the what they have observed.
Assemble the students in groups of five people each. Ask them to discuss their observations, and to discuss how all of the things they observed may be connected.
Have each group come up with a model, drawing, skit or other manifestation of how they believe everything may be connected.
Did You Know?
Walden Woods is located on Route 126 in the Town of Lincoln, Massachusetts. It is a 30-40 minute drive from downtown Boston.
Walden Woods is 2,680 acres. Approximately 70% of it is protected by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Walden Woods Project, and local conservation groups.
Henry David Thoreau saw farming and use of trees for fuel and timber as some of the greatest threats to the Walden environment.
Today, Walden Woods continues to be vulnerable, but by highways and a major landfill. About 30% of Walden, or about 800 acres, could fall into the hands of developers.
Walden Woods came to international attention in the late 1980s when developers proposed to build an office complex and condominiums in close proximity to Walden Pond. As a result of the Walden Woods Project, formed by recording artist Don Henley, raise over $22 million to purchase and place in conservation the sites slated for commercial development plus additional land, totaling over 100 acres in all.
In November 1999, Walden Woods was named as one of America's Last Chance Landscapes by Scenic America, a national environmental organization dedicated to the protection of America's natural beauty and the preservation of its landscapes and communities.
In 1997, Don Henley was awarded the National Humanitarian Award by President Clinton for his efforts to save the Walden Woods and for establishing the Thoreau Institute.
Henry David Thoreau was a contemporary and close friend of another famous America writer, Ralph Waldo Emerson. (Information resources: The Thoreau Society, The Thoreau Institute, and the Walden Woods Project.).
Walden Woods is the site of Henry David Thoreau's two-year, two-month and two-day experiment in simple living and communion with nature while living in a small self-made house on the shore of Walden Pond. The locale of Thoreau's Walden and much of his other literary works and his scientific observations, Walden Woods encompasses 2,680 acres and is located in the towns of Concord and Lincoln, Massachusetts. Often acknowledged as the birthplace of the American conservation movement, it was largely on the basis of observations made within Walden Woods that Thoreau asserted the principle of land preservation, which ultimately became a model for our national park system.
While at Walden, Thoreau spent many hours observing the natural world and painstakingly chronicled his observations in his journal. His observations and his record of them formed the foundation for his definitive work, Walden, in which he argued for the preservation of "wildness" and of Walden Woods in particular. Walden Pond and Walden Woods served as wellsprings of inspiration for Thoreau's far-reaching philosophies and masterful literary works.