Inspired recycling habits in Boyd Elementary

Kelsea Garthoff, Drury MIRROR Issue date: 11/19/08
Drury's Think Green organization has gotten involved with an after-school program at Boyd Elementary School to promote eco-friendly habits and teach students about the environment.

Kindergarten through fifth grade students can participate in the program called the Boyd Green Team that is mentored by Drury students involved in Think Green.

Boyd Elementary School's Principal James Grandon says he expects great things from the environment based program.

"The biggest life influence that this can have is the potential to change lives by increasing awareness, which is great for the environment," Grandon said.

Grandon, along with students, are excited about the possible benefits this may bring to Boyd Elementary in the form of recycle bins and cutting down on waste.

With turnouts every second Thursday each month of roughly 20 kids, Think Green is getting their point across to the children. Activities include recycling, planting, and reusing items to make new ones, which make Think Green ideas relatable to young students.

Boyd Students Amahra Cole and Zoie Boozer participate in the Think Green program put on by Drury every month. Both students said that their favorite activities were planting flowers and using cardboard cereal boxes to make notebooks.

"I didn't make a notebook like everyone else," Boozer said. "I made a picture album for my teacher because she is getting married and I thought she would like it."

Not only were the cardboard cereal boxes a hit, students enjoy the entire program.

"We get to do really fun stuff and we get to help the earth," Cole said.

Other students share in their enjoyment and are becoming more aware of the problems that pollution and people can cause. Sister school Round Tree Elementary has experienced the same positive feedback from recycling.

"They recycled paper and put it in a giant bin on stage. And after about two weeks they had several hundred pounds of paper," Grandon said.

Grandon thinks that this sort of gesture makes it possible for kids to actually grasp the amount of paper used in school every week.

Cole and Boozer along with other Boyd students are not only recycling in school now, but wish to involve it in their home life as well.

"I want to start recycling at home," Boozer said. "I told my mom that we should so we are going to get a box now to recycle."