We’re crazy about worms at Big T! For those of you who haven’t heard the buzz, we have three refrigerators—currently painted green—for our worm bins in the garden next to the Kindergarten classroom. The 5th graders have been sorting waste in the lunchroom every day, helping students put ‘anything that grows’ (no meat, dairy or breads) into the bucket to give to the worms, and helping to divert recycling from the trash stream as well. Students are still encouraged to eat what they take, though we are excited to have this option!
See if your student can tell you what food and trash goes where in the lunchroom (certain foods in the orange bucket for the worms, recycling to get rinsed and go in the rectangular bins, milk dumped in the gray bucket, and all trash in the round trash cans at the back).
Today was our school-wide Worm Day. Students were able to see the worms in the bins with their buddies, as well as take part in worm-related craft, science, math and writing activities. Students will have a packet of worm activities that they worked on today, as well as craft projects they can show you. Ask your student something new she or he learned about worms, and what they know about vermicomposting (using worms to aid with composting)!
(This week's Nature and Science Corner)
Friday, December 18, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
What to do with your Plastic Bags (Big T can’t take them anymore)
Wal-Mart has discontinued the program for schools to recycle plastic bags to raise money. We will continue to allow the students to recycle a plastic bag they may happen to have with them at Big T rather than throw it away, but we can’t take the volumes we’ve been receiving, as our school’s single-stream recycling program doesn’t accept plastic bags. (We will slowly take them to be re-used, so if you want any, let Mrs. Culhane or Ms. Amber know.)
Brainstorm with your child ways to keep plastic bags out of our landfills. Encourage them to ask questions of retailers, friends and neighbors to figure out what stores and other people do to reduce their impact.
How to keep plastic bags out of the landfill (in order of preference):
1) If you can carry what you bought, tell the cashier you don’t need a bag!
2) Take reusable cloth bags to the store so you don’t have to use disposable bags of any sort. You can often find cloth bags at a thrift store, or maybe you could make your own.
3) See if the store has boxes they’ve received merchandise in, and pack up your groceries or other products in there. You can recycle the box at home, which is what the store probably would do anyway.
4) If you have to take a new bag, ask for paper. It is a renewable resource and can be easily recycled, or if needed, composted.
5) Re-use the plastic bags you already have (you can double and triple bag them!) until they absolutely have to be recycled. If you have a lot of plastic bags in good condition, search for a thrift store or other place that may be able to reuse the bags another time.
6) Remember that recycling is the last step to keep things out of the landfill. Most grocery stores have a place to recycle plastic bags. Please don’t put them in your home recycling, as they get caught in the sorting machines at the recycling facilities.
If you have any questions about recycling, reusing or reducing please send an email to lamba@thompson.k12.co.us or leave a note in Ms. Amber’s box. Thanks for doing your part to keep plastic bags out of the landfill!
Brainstorm with your child ways to keep plastic bags out of our landfills. Encourage them to ask questions of retailers, friends and neighbors to figure out what stores and other people do to reduce their impact.
How to keep plastic bags out of the landfill (in order of preference):
1) If you can carry what you bought, tell the cashier you don’t need a bag!
2) Take reusable cloth bags to the store so you don’t have to use disposable bags of any sort. You can often find cloth bags at a thrift store, or maybe you could make your own.
3) See if the store has boxes they’ve received merchandise in, and pack up your groceries or other products in there. You can recycle the box at home, which is what the store probably would do anyway.
4) If you have to take a new bag, ask for paper. It is a renewable resource and can be easily recycled, or if needed, composted.
5) Re-use the plastic bags you already have (you can double and triple bag them!) until they absolutely have to be recycled. If you have a lot of plastic bags in good condition, search for a thrift store or other place that may be able to reuse the bags another time.
6) Remember that recycling is the last step to keep things out of the landfill. Most grocery stores have a place to recycle plastic bags. Please don’t put them in your home recycling, as they get caught in the sorting machines at the recycling facilities.
If you have any questions about recycling, reusing or reducing please send an email to lamba@thompson.k12.co.us or leave a note in Ms. Amber’s box. Thanks for doing your part to keep plastic bags out of the landfill!
Monday, September 7, 2009
Big T School of Nature and Science
Good news! We've been back to school for a few weeks now and Big T is officially a focus School of Nature and Science. Amber Lamb (our Nature and Science coordinator) will be taking over posting to the Green T blog for updates on all the fun and amazing things we will be doing to continue our green work in the world.
We have some donated refrigerators for our worm composting and are waiting for some paint, and the worms themselves.
We have a school-wide Environmental Education Day coming up on September 25th where ALL the students will go to nearby natural areas to have some quality outdoor learning and exploring time, while their teachers will stay here to plan some nature and science activities in their classes for the upcoming weeks of lessons. Stay tuned!
Do you have any recent outdoor learning experiences to share with the students here?
Happy adventuring!
We have some donated refrigerators for our worm composting and are waiting for some paint, and the worms themselves.
We have a school-wide Environmental Education Day coming up on September 25th where ALL the students will go to nearby natural areas to have some quality outdoor learning and exploring time, while their teachers will stay here to plan some nature and science activities in their classes for the upcoming weeks of lessons. Stay tuned!
Do you have any recent outdoor learning experiences to share with the students here?
Happy adventuring!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Happy Earth Day!
Why celebrate Earth Day? Here's what we think:
Back Flipper: The Earth gives us food and air and water.
Flower: The Earth is special to me because if the Earth was not here, we would not live on Earth.
Destroyer: The trees give oxygen to the humans.
And, as a special Earth Day treat, the second-grade Green Team is going to respond to some of your questions and comments today!
Ms. Woodruff asked if it was difficult to reduce the waste in the cafeteria:
Back Flipper says: For us, it was not, because it turned out good.
Flower says: Yes, because every day we had to follow directions to separate the trash, and I wanted to do it by myself.
Destroyer: It was hard, but it was fun.
She also asked what our favorite trash sculptures were:
Back Flipper: We liked the one that looked like a robot that was made by a fifth grader. I also liked the giant turtle.
Flower says: A horse, and I got a runner-up award.
Destroyer: I liked my tank one.
Ms. Woodruff wanted to know if our petunias from Green Day are still doing well:
Back Flipper says: Mine are still living and look good. We planted them outside with our cucumber and tomato.
Flower says: Yes. We will take them with us when we move.
Destroyer says: Mine are awesome, and they have tiny plants growing on them.
Hi, AZ Cowgirl!
Good and awesome job on using water twice, and using less water!
To psdtechpd:
Thank you! We think the blog is important so we can tell people things they don't know.
Back Flipper: The Earth gives us food and air and water.
Flower: The Earth is special to me because if the Earth was not here, we would not live on Earth.
Destroyer: The trees give oxygen to the humans.
And, as a special Earth Day treat, the second-grade Green Team is going to respond to some of your questions and comments today!
Ms. Woodruff asked if it was difficult to reduce the waste in the cafeteria:
Back Flipper says: For us, it was not, because it turned out good.
Flower says: Yes, because every day we had to follow directions to separate the trash, and I wanted to do it by myself.
Destroyer: It was hard, but it was fun.
She also asked what our favorite trash sculptures were:
Back Flipper: We liked the one that looked like a robot that was made by a fifth grader. I also liked the giant turtle.
Flower says: A horse, and I got a runner-up award.
Destroyer: I liked my tank one.
Ms. Woodruff wanted to know if our petunias from Green Day are still doing well:
Back Flipper says: Mine are still living and look good. We planted them outside with our cucumber and tomato.
Flower says: Yes. We will take them with us when we move.
Destroyer says: Mine are awesome, and they have tiny plants growing on them.
Hi, AZ Cowgirl!
Good and awesome job on using water twice, and using less water!
To psdtechpd:
Thank you! We think the blog is important so we can tell people things they don't know.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Big T's Green Day
Big T's Green Day, held on April 10, was a great success! The students enjoyed a full day of nature and science, including learning how worms make compost and creating imaginative sculptures out of trash (some of which will go on to compete in the Larimer County Landfill's "Trash to Treasure" art contest).
Other Green adventures throughout the day included a bird/bird food tag, making their own landfill-in-a-bottle experiments, planting take-home petunias in recycled newspaper pots, and participating in a recycled book exchange.
The lunch recycling program for the week culminated with a great reduction in the amount of trash Big T students threw away at lunch, and an increase in the amount of recycling ~ good job, Big T Greenies!
To see two wonderful newspaper features on the day, go to http://www.reporterherald.com/news_story.asp?ID=22540 and to http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990411002
Other Green adventures throughout the day included a bird/bird food tag, making their own landfill-in-a-bottle experiments, planting take-home petunias in recycled newspaper pots, and participating in a recycled book exchange.
The lunch recycling program for the week culminated with a great reduction in the amount of trash Big T students threw away at lunch, and an increase in the amount of recycling ~ good job, Big T Greenies!
To see two wonderful newspaper features on the day, go to http://www.reporterherald.com/news_story.asp?ID=22540 and to http://www.coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990411002
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Saving Water Tips from Our Green Team
The first-grade Green Team is reading a book about saving water, and we have some tips for our Blog Buddies:
Instead of letting the water run, just turn it on when you need it. ~Dinosaur
When you want to wash dishes, you should turn on the water, and when the sink is full, use the water to wash the dishes. ~Doodle Monkey
Our water comes from rain or the mountains, so we need to save it! ~Cow
When you are camping, you have a water bottle, and you're doing the dishes, don't use up all the water at once. ~Mum
When you're drinking a glass or bottle of water, don't pour it out on the ground. You should drink it! ~Dog
The second-grade Green Team has an answer for our Blog Buddy Jim in Australia. He asked how he could save water while cleaning bugs off his car. Here's our answer:
~It takes 65 pints of water to wash your family car with water in buckets. ~Bob the Builder
~It takes 390 pints of water to wash the car if you use a hose. ~Back Flipper
~So, use buckets instead of a hose. ~Destroyer
~You can save a lot of water using buckets. You can save 325 pints! ~Flower
Good luck, Jim!
Instead of letting the water run, just turn it on when you need it. ~Dinosaur
When you want to wash dishes, you should turn on the water, and when the sink is full, use the water to wash the dishes. ~Doodle Monkey
Our water comes from rain or the mountains, so we need to save it! ~Cow
When you are camping, you have a water bottle, and you're doing the dishes, don't use up all the water at once. ~Mum
When you're drinking a glass or bottle of water, don't pour it out on the ground. You should drink it! ~Dog
The second-grade Green Team has an answer for our Blog Buddy Jim in Australia. He asked how he could save water while cleaning bugs off his car. Here's our answer:
~It takes 65 pints of water to wash your family car with water in buckets. ~Bob the Builder
~It takes 390 pints of water to wash the car if you use a hose. ~Back Flipper
~So, use buckets instead of a hose. ~Destroyer
~You can save a lot of water using buckets. You can save 325 pints! ~Flower
Good luck, Jim!
Monday, March 30, 2009
We Celebrated Earth Hour! (Also, Any Questions?)
Thank you to our Blog Buddies, who shared various ways they observed Earth Hour, including reading by candlelight and making shadow puppets! Please see their comments below, under the March 24 post.
Here's how some of our first-grade Green Team members spent the hour on Saturday night:
We turned our lights off, but my Mom was watching TV, so I watched with her. ~Bubba
I went to sleep, so I just had all the lights off. ~Dinosaur
I was somewhere else, so all the lights in our house were turned off! ~Dog
We turned most of the lights off, and I played Ghost in the Graveyard with my sister. ~Doodle Monkey
I turned off my bedroom lights. ~Mum
We only kept a light in the kitchen and in the laundry room on. ~Cars
We turned off two lights. ~Hammer
Several second-grade Green Team members participated as well:
We turned every light except the TV off. ~Bob the Builder
We forgot, until a friend called me, then I turned off the lights in my room, in the hallway, and the stairs. ~Horse Girl
We kept turning our X-Box off and on, and off and on! We had all the other lights off. ~Destroyer
I went to bed and turned most of the lights off, except the one I use as a night light. ~65KTM
Right now, we're reading books on saving water, recycling, saving energy and caring for our environment. We should have some good tips for our readers soon.
Meanwhile, do any of you have questions about any environmental topic that we can try to answer for you? We have a lot of books we can use for research! Thanks again for taking time to be our Blog Buddies!
Here's how some of our first-grade Green Team members spent the hour on Saturday night:
We turned our lights off, but my Mom was watching TV, so I watched with her. ~Bubba
I went to sleep, so I just had all the lights off. ~Dinosaur
I was somewhere else, so all the lights in our house were turned off! ~Dog
We turned most of the lights off, and I played Ghost in the Graveyard with my sister. ~Doodle Monkey
I turned off my bedroom lights. ~Mum
We only kept a light in the kitchen and in the laundry room on. ~Cars
We turned off two lights. ~Hammer
Several second-grade Green Team members participated as well:
We turned every light except the TV off. ~Bob the Builder
We forgot, until a friend called me, then I turned off the lights in my room, in the hallway, and the stairs. ~Horse Girl
We kept turning our X-Box off and on, and off and on! We had all the other lights off. ~Destroyer
I went to bed and turned most of the lights off, except the one I use as a night light. ~65KTM
Right now, we're reading books on saving water, recycling, saving energy and caring for our environment. We should have some good tips for our readers soon.
Meanwhile, do any of you have questions about any environmental topic that we can try to answer for you? We have a lot of books we can use for research! Thanks again for taking time to be our Blog Buddies!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
See you Monday!
The much-needed snow shut down school ~ and our blog ~ on Thursday and Friday, but we'll be back on Monday, March 30! In the meantime, join us in turning your lights off tonight (Saturday) during Earth Hour from 8:30-9:30 p.m. local time (for more information, scroll down to our previous postings).
Saturday, 6:15 p.m.
This just in: AOL News has a great report on Earth Hour as it has been happening across the globe, with many cool photos! Go to http://search.aol.com/aol/newshome, and type in "Lights Out Worldwide Mark Earth Hour" (without the quote marks), then click on the article by the same name. (Sorry, I couldn't get the direct link to the article to work.) ~Mrs. Coalwell
Saturday, 6:15 p.m.
This just in: AOL News has a great report on Earth Hour as it has been happening across the globe, with many cool photos! Go to http://search.aol.com/aol/newshome, and type in "Lights Out Worldwide Mark Earth Hour" (without the quote marks), then click on the article by the same name. (Sorry, I couldn't get the direct link to the article to work.) ~Mrs. Coalwell
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
More Ideas on Saving Energy
Thank you to our Blog Buddies who have already made comments, and are participating in Earth Hour on Saturday night (8:30 p.m. local time) to turn off your lights for 60 minutes.
Want even more ways to save energy? Here are some great ideas from our second-grade Green Team (using their online nicknames):
If you watch TV, turn it off when you're finished. ~Back Flipper
You can burn gasoline better by warming up your car. ~KTM65
When you are done mowing the grass with a lawnmower, turn it off right away. ~Flower
Turn off your flashlight to save batteries. ~Destroyer
If you talk and your car is on, you are burning gasoline, so turn your car off and you'll save gas and won't pollute the Earth. ~Giggly
You can turn off the shower when you are done. ~Bob the Builder
Do you do any of those energy-saving things? Do you have other suggestions? Please use our "Comments" link below and tell us about it!
Stay tuned, because this team is researching some even better ways to conserve!
Want even more ways to save energy? Here are some great ideas from our second-grade Green Team (using their online nicknames):
If you watch TV, turn it off when you're finished. ~Back Flipper
You can burn gasoline better by warming up your car. ~KTM65
When you are done mowing the grass with a lawnmower, turn it off right away. ~Flower
Turn off your flashlight to save batteries. ~Destroyer
If you talk and your car is on, you are burning gasoline, so turn your car off and you'll save gas and won't pollute the Earth. ~Giggly
You can turn off the shower when you are done. ~Bob the Builder
Do you do any of those energy-saving things? Do you have other suggestions? Please use our "Comments" link below and tell us about it!
Stay tuned, because this team is researching some even better ways to conserve!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Earth Hour
This Saturday night, March 28, at 8:30 p.m. local time, people around the world will be turning off their lights for one hour, in a global show of unity to save energy and combat global warming. From Denver to Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia, the lights will go off in big office buildings, on lighted signs, in restaurants and in homes. If you'd like to learn more and join in, go to www.EarthHourUS.org/main.php. If you decide to turn off your lights on Saturday night, here are some ideas from our first-grade Green Team (using their online nicknames) on things to do during that hour:
You could ride the 4-wheeler (it has headlights). ~Dog
You could play with your dart gun (not the pointy kind, though). ~Mum
You could play with your dog with a flashlight. ~Bubba
You could play Texas Hold 'Em. ~Cow
You could play Ghost in the Graveyard (a tag game). ~Doodle Monkey
You could play Call and Hide (another tag game). ~Dinosaur
To our Blog Buddies: What ideas do you have for making the most of Earth Hour? How about roasting marshmallows around a campfire outside? Maybe an indoor book-reading time by candlelight? Let us know what you think by clicking on the "Comment" link!
Coming soon: Our second-grade Green Team will give you more ideas on saving energy!
You could ride the 4-wheeler (it has headlights). ~Dog
You could play with your dart gun (not the pointy kind, though). ~Mum
You could play with your dog with a flashlight. ~Bubba
You could play Texas Hold 'Em. ~Cow
You could play Ghost in the Graveyard (a tag game). ~Doodle Monkey
You could play Call and Hide (another tag game). ~Dinosaur
To our Blog Buddies: What ideas do you have for making the most of Earth Hour? How about roasting marshmallows around a campfire outside? Maybe an indoor book-reading time by candlelight? Let us know what you think by clicking on the "Comment" link!
Coming soon: Our second-grade Green Team will give you more ideas on saving energy!
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