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Home > E-Newsletter Archive Listing Welcome to the CALLOWAY HOUSE E-Newsletter Archive September 2008 CREATING AN EARTH-FRIENDLY CLASSROOM How green can you be? Now is the perfect time to assess your level of earth-friendliness, and the classroom is the perfect place to teach future generations what it takes to be responsible caretakers of our planet. There are all kinds of things to think about when it comes to showing your students how we can protect our environment. Why not begin with the three R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. REDUCE What can you reduce? How about paper, energy use and air/land pollution, just to name a few: Paper Have students use response boards. Our HOLD-‘EM-UP PADDLE BOARDS or DRY ERASE LAPBOARDS allow students to write their response, then hold up their boards for you to review. Present paperless lessons. Use a whiteboard, chalkboard, OVERHEAD PROJECTOR and TRANSPARENCIES for lessons. Our 3-IN-1 PORTABLE EASEL provides a desktop magnetic whiteboard and flannel board and folds up for easy transport! Keep handouts to one page. Use both sides of the paper, make it single spaced, use a smaller font, make margins narrower, etc. Post or route teacher-to-teacher communications. E-mail or post information on a central bulletin board; route documents requiring a signature. Create a “sharing area” for shared supplies like reference books, supply catalogs, etc. Go digital. Save files on your computer rather than in a filing cabinet or binder. Proofread new handouts on your computer screen instead of printing drafts. Have students turn in their homework electronically. Utilize electronic textbooks rather than paper ones. Introduce podcasts. You can download them directly to our MP3 PLAYER RECORDER. Start a class website. If you don’t already have one, get one! Websites are a paperless way to communicate with both students AND parents. Pack green. Ask students and/or parents to use reusable containers, utensils and napkins for packed lunches. Use biodegradable plates and napkins for in-class snack time. Energy Use Have students brainstorm on ways they can save energy at home. See how many of their ideas can translate to the classroom. Use your thermostat wisely. Keep it a little warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter if you can. Inform parents of your room’s temperature settings so they can ensure their children are dressed appropriately. Make settings even higher/lower after school hours. Use the sun’s energy. Turn off the lights when you don’t need them. Open the blinds when it’s cooler outside. Have class outdoors! Turn off electrical equipment when not in use. Be sure to check with your IT department before turning off your computer. When your computer is running, use its sleep setting to help conserve energy. Use laptops if you can. They save oodles of space AND energy! Take virtual field trips. Taking an online trip to the Grand Canyon or the Globe Theater might not be as good as visiting in person, but it’s an opportunity to take your students anywhere in the world without leaving the classroom or using gas! Air/Land Pollution Use nontoxic supplies. Make sure art supplies are labeled as nontoxic prior to purchasing. Our EXPO® and EXPO II® LOW-ODOR DRY ERASE MARKERS, WHITEBOARD CRAYONS, LIQUID ACCENT HIGHLIGHTERS and more are all nontoxic! Clean green. Green cleaning supplies are made from biodegradable materials and are much healthier for your students and the environment. Encourage your leadership to clean the whole school green! Save gas! Carpool or take public transportation. Encourage students to take the bus, walk or ride bikes rather than drive to school. Save water. Water conservation begins at home. Encourage students to take short showers and to turn the water off when brushing teeth. Brainstorm on ways to save/recycle water at home and at school. Plant a tree. Or, if you have the room, have a flower or vegetable garden. Start a compost pile - a great way to recycle organic material. Students can share the produce or give it a local shelter. REUSE Reuse classroom supplies. Collect any usable supplies from your students, such as writing instruments, rulers, partially used notebooks (with used pages torn out) or notebook paper and binders. Donate or keep supplies for students who forget or can’t afford supplies. Reuse household items. Have parents donate extra, unused or partially used items to use in art, math, science or other projects. Not only does it save you money, but it helps your students learn how to recycle at home! Reuse paper. Laminate often-used sentence strips and worksheets. Students can write on the laminated surface with WET ERASE MARKERS or STUDENT-SIZE DRY ERASE MARKERS, and the surface can be wiped clean. Our WRITE ON! PAPER-SAVER POCKETS let you insert the handout, then write, erase and write again on the pocket’s surface! Reuse bulletin board materials. Laminate bulletin board decoratives. Use REMOVABLE TEACHERS’ TAPE to hang posters, borders and decoratives instead of using damaging staples or tape. Use backgrounds that are more reusable than construction paper, such as cloth or wallpaper. Tablecloths and sheets can often be found at bargain prices, and local companies might be willing to donate discontinued wallpaper. Turn trash to treasure. Have a contest in which students must make something usable from items they might normally throw away. This is a great project for students of all ages, as the item they create can vary in difficulty. RECYCLE Recycle papers. Designate an area for students to deposit papers to use as scrap. Our PAPER WEDGES or THE STACKER would be ideal since they both hold lots of paper.
Save a tree! Purchase paper and other products made from recycled
materials. Here are just a few of our items that are made from
recycled material: Recycle electronics. Technology changes quickly make equipment obsolete. To find out how and where you can recycle electronics in your state, visit the Environmental Protection Agency’s website: http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/live.htm. HOT TIP: If you don’t have a school-wide system in place for recycling items other than paper, take advantage of home recycling. With parental permission, have students volunteer to take home aluminum, plastic or other items to recycle at home. |
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