Climate Literacy in Education

Beyond the Vocabulary List

A Reflection on Integrating Climate Literacy in a Cross-disciplinary project in a Language Classroom

Xinyue Zong

Keywords: cross-disciplinary immersion, multimodal literacy, EcoJustice education, somatic pedagogy, deep time

Abstract

This reflection examines a cross-disciplinary, project-based Mandarin immersion curriculum designed to integrate English Language Arts (ELA) and Science units on wild animals’ habitat and ecological crises in a third-grade classroom. Moving beyond print-based instruction, I reflect on using multimodal pedagogy to alleviate the "linguistic bottleneck" where primary students' complex, higher-order climate awareness outpaces their novice-stage target language proficiency. The narrative details critical pedagogical struggles—ranging from the limitations of static vocabulary lists to the emergence of profound student climate anxiety (eco-grief). To ground abstract ecosystem parameters and process heavy climate emotions, I pivoted to incorporate picturebooks, physical movement such as Tai Chi (Cloud Hands) and Daoist cosmological lenses (Yin-Yang and Tian Ren He Yi). Leveraging non-Western cultural assets allows young immersion learners to bypass linguistic bottlenecks, transform eco-anxiety into actionable daily advocacy, and embody a relational, non-dominant worldview.