LBHS FLOW begins the year as a new program, ends the year with a flourish
Laguna Beach High School (LBHS) implemented a brand-new program called LBHS FLOW this past academic year. The mission of the program was to provide specific academic content that engaged the students to work together with each other and with the outside community.
The FLOW program was designed by LBHS English teachers David Brobeck and Sarah Benson. Their goal was to create an innovative approach to learning and writing across the curriculum, while weaving together the student body, diverse academic disciplines and community partners in a communal effort to strengthen students’ stewardship of our natural environment.
FLOW stands for fire, land, ocean, and water – four environmental issues particularly relevant to Laguna Beach. This past year, students studied FLOW topics in grades 9-12.
SchoolPower furthered support by selecting the FLOW program as their MegaGrant recipient in 2020 and continues to partner with FLOW, providing unparalleled educational opportunities to the students.
The kick-off for the program earlier this school year was a week-long event titled FLOW Week that took place in November. Coast Film Festival (CFF) joined in, spearheaded by Ben Warner and Enich Harris, providing dynamic films and curating speakers and content from professional athletes, activists and filmmakers, which were then presented to students in grade-level assemblies.
Those assemblies allowed students to hear from the likes of professional surfer Greg Long, filmmaker and Laguna Beach local Greg MacGillivray and National Geographic filmmaker Pete McBride concerning environmental issues that brought FLOW topics to life.
Some of the successes throughout the year included a January lesson, where the entire student body read a memoir text connected to their respective FLOW topic. Students then engaged in reading, writing and discussions to tackle the significance of environmental issues.
Added to this was the integration of community partners to add depth to the experience. For example, freshmen (studying fire) participated in a presentation from the Laguna Beach Fire Department, as well as a panel discussion with local residents who experienced the 1993 Laguna Beach fire.
Sophomores (studying land) learned about the preservation of Laguna Canyon from Hallie Jones of the Laguna Canyon Foundation.
Then, throughout the year, the LBHS FLOW Club participated in FLOW Service Sundays with local community partners, including sustainable farming and composting in conjunction with The Ranch, trail work with Laguna Canyon Foundation and much more.
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