You asked we heard, and now we’re delivering! How do you make a classroom more eco-friendly? Can you make your classroom sustainable? The answer is yes!
There are actually a great number of ways that you can make your classroom green(er).
Let in the light!
Sounds obvious right? But so many forget! One of the simplest ways to cut down on energy usage (and brighten up your room) is to just pull back those curtains and let the sunshine in. This is both energy efficient and has been shown to improve student health, double win!
Bring some Indoor Plants into your Classroom
Combine lessons in sustainability with lessons in plant care and biology! Add a few plants around the room and teach kids how to care for them, and why plants are so good for us.
Have a weekly “Green Hour”
Start teaching your kids about the power of turning off the electronics. Once a week, turn off all lights and outlets in your classroom and practise a fun, eco-friendly activity. Show them how to have fun without electronics!
Recycle!
An awesome way to make your classroom greener, and to encourage your kids to be more sustainable is to have a recycling challenge. Which one of your students can recycle the most paper or materials in a week? They win a prize!
Use eco-friendly, sustainable products
As well as sustainable, eco-friendly pens make sure you’re using recycled paper and eco-friendly paints. Show the kids how fun watercolouring can be by making your own watercolours!
Start a herb garden!
If you’ve got the space, start planting some herbs in a patch of soil and teach the kids how eco-friendly growing your own herbs can be. Bonus points if you have enough space to grow some carrots that can be eaten!
Reduce or ban single use plastics
Banning single use plastics can be hard to do altogether, however reducing the amount you use can be easy! Focus on events such as at snack time- make sure no single use plates or cutlery is used, and make sure any plastic wrapping is swapped out with biodegradable food packaging instead.
Lead by Example
Last, but certainly not least, lead by example. Show the kids that even cool adults care about the environment. Use a Keep Cup instead of a disposable coffee cup, talk about reusing shopping bags, show how you recycle yourself- it all adds up!
Got any more tips about how to make your classroom more sustainable? We’d love to hear them, drop us a line at founders@ecopen.club or contact us via social media!