Inspectors and their badges!!

Have you noticed these signs on the classroom doors yet?

The student council, 'Super Green Eco Team' have been inspecting every classroom at PS40 and if the classroom's recycling bins pass their inspection- they get an 'A-OK' super recycling badge. We've had many students come up to us in the hallways- 'we got our badge!!'

The Super Green Eco Teams' goal is to have the badge on every classroom and office door!! 

Here is an example of the checklist they fill out....

The First Bulletin Board!

Has everyone seen the bulletin board that's been in the cafeteria since last fall??? Well it's gone now, and we have put up a lot of very powerful images of plastic bags and the harm they do to the environment. 

But here is the first bulletin board- just in case you missed it!

The 100th day of school & recycling!

On Feb. 11, 2008 all grades at PS40 collaborated with Craig Kane, the art teacher, to celebrate the 100th day of school. The Student Council decided on a recycling project which the school is actively practicing this year.

K through fourth grade were asked to bring recyclable objects- empty cereal boxes, aluminum foil, plastic bottles, brown paper bags & paper rolls on the 100th day. 5th graders were asked to bring in tins of food to give to those in need. Throughout the 100th day Craig supervised the building of sculptures made from them.

What was made? A replica of PS40 built from 100 cereal boxes, with the students represented in front by plastic bottles. A teepee structured of cardboard strips and covered with brown paper bags stood behind a man made of toilet and paper towel rolls with a circus dog of aluminum foil!!

It was a satisfying metaphor for the school’s recycling project- in which individual efforts, that might seem insignificant on their own, become something meaningful when combined with the efforts of others.

And this project will itself be recycled to become part of the PS40 bid in the citywide competition for the “Trashmasters! Super Recyclers’ Golden Apple Award” this May.

REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE…RETHINK!

We couldn't do it without them!!

Here's a big THANKS!!!! To Shawn (directly below) and Joe, Elliot and Hector (bottom pic, from left to right) for helping us to recycle! Look out for the Super Green Eco Team's interview of the custodial team, coming soon!

Taking it home!!

There is always something to learn, and it seems that our kids are our greatest teachers in so many ways. Here is a recycling story from a mother of 2 girls at PS40...

Recycled Trash is so much more than our actual trash

My daughters (in 1st grade and 5th grade at PS40) told me that two women (parents of PS 40) came into their classrooms and spoke to them about recycling and showed them examples as well as took questions. A question that had been boggling us was whether tissues could be recycled or not. I figured they are made of paper so why not? But I was informed by my daughters that indeed they are not recyclable because we sneeze into them. I was quite surprised but I learned something new. At home we've always recycled but now Meagan and Morgan are seeing to it that we are bringing their lessons home and learning what goes where. It is so nice to see that they care for their environment and their future - that they are making sure to take part not only in school but at home as well and when we visit family they are making sure to inform them too. We've also taken great notice that we have very little actual trash and lots of recycled trash to put out. When you sort everything on a regular basis you can really notice that we don't have much actual trash but we do have a lot of actual recycled materials.
written by: Annette

On the tour....

Here we are on our whirlwind tour....

Class Visits!

This past week, we (Suzie & Michele) visited every classroom at PS40 to talk to the students and teachers about the ‘Trashmasters! Super Recyclers’ contest the school is entering. Wow! What an amazing response we got! We were warmly greeted at every door and by the time we left every student was truly interested and excited about recycling.

We brought with us a large display board to explain what was recyclable. The board was divided into 2 sections --the green side for ‘Paper’ & the blue side for ‘Bottles, Cartons & Cans’-- with the actual papers, water bottles and juice cartons glued onto the board. Our goal was to simplify what they need to know and this visual/tactile guide seemed easiest to follow.

We discussed what couldn’t be recycled: any plastic bottle with a large opening (i.e. yogurt containers) as well as napkins, hand wipes, paper towels and tissues (‘soft paper’). This was a surprise to most students and teachers alike. We later found out that many students have been instructing their families on the rules of recycling as well.

Once we explained what could be recycled, we checked each classroom to be sure they had the appropriate recycling supplies. Most classrooms had only a ‘paper’ recycling bin and a garbage bin. We asked the teachers and students if they needed a ‘bottles, cartons and can’s’ bin as well. Those that did were given one by the end of the week. We discussed the responsibilities of the classroom recycling monitors - at the end of each day they must empty their recycling bins into the large recycling bins at the end of the hall on their floor.

Lastly, we told them about the ‘Super Green Eco Team’, our enthusiastic student team, who serve as ‘inspectors’ for each classroom and showed them the ‘A-OK! Badge’ that would be posted on their door once they passed inspection.

The students had so many questions! ‘Can sandpaper be recycled?’ & ‘Can wood shavings from pencils?’ One class was even assigned recycling research for homework. In the end, they wanted to know what we were going to win (the Golden Apple Award & money) and what would happen if we didn’t win. We explained that there’s always next year and that by learning to recycle now, they would learn the importance of recycling and that would last a lifetime, and that in itself is a win-win situation.

Used Book Nook!

What a great idea...Donate books that your children have outgrown and buy books that have been donated...all to support the school's enrichment programs...!! Read below and check out the books in the school store.

More Eco-Tips!

Some more Eco-Tips from the December 2007 PS40 Newsletter in case you missed them....

GO GREEN!

Use the Backside of Paper!

Here's a great idea from a student!! See original artwork on the 3rd Floor! Let's take their advice and use both sides of paper before we recycle it....set up a small box at home and in the classroom where you put paper that can be 'reused'...

Eco-tips!!

If you missed reading the Oct/Nov PS40 Newletter, here are some tips posted by the Eco-Committee!

Student letter to Miss Felder

Here's a sweet inspiring letter that our principal shared with us! 

Intro Letter Sent to Teachers

HI, This was the introductory letter sent to PS40 teachers in Oct 2007 with a packet of recycling supplies:

click on image to see larger...

What can we recycle??

It can be confusing! Here is a chart of what can and cannot be recycled...we have lots of these in magnetic form, so if you need one, let us know!

(Click on image to zoom in...)