Well, school has been in session for almost three weeks now so I suppose it’s safe to say that most teachers in Hampton Roads are back in the groove and have established their classroom rules and routines by now. While September is a busy time for teachers and students alike, it’s also the perfect time to put some green practices into place in the classroom that will soon become habits and last for the rest of the school year. We know teachers have lots on their plates so to make it easier, we’ve put together some quick tips to help teachers green up the classroom and teach students about the importance of conserving resources.
- Rethink your routines. Find creative ways to reuse paper and other supplies in the classroom. That old math test could become next week’s origami art project! Take an extra five minutes at recess to have students do a campus clean-up.
- Make recycling easy and accessible. Have recycling receptacles readily available in the classroom and encourage their use. Assign a “recycling monitor” to be in charge of making sure recyclables don’t end up in the trash.
- Reward green behavior. Try implementing a “caught being green” award system to catch students in the act of reducing, reusing, and recycling and recognize them for their good stewardship.
- Take the Green Classroom Pledge. Publicly commit your classroom to being green by taking the askHRgreen.org Green Classroom Pledge. A school recycling program gets everyone thinking, so have students sign this pledge that encourages them to be good green stewards at school and at home.