In 2017 Firhouse ETNS was awarded its first Green Flag for working hard to reduce litter and waste in the school and for creating an awareness of same in both pupils and their families.
We are working towards our very first green school flag based on the theme of litter and waste. Our work began last year where we started weighing our rubbish and we are continuing to do so this year where we are creating a three bin system in each classroom for recycling, compost and general waste.
Our Action Plan consists of nine different parts:
1. Creating a green school committee that was established last year with a combination of parents, students and staff.
2. Organising a three bin system in the classroom which is now up and running
3. Weighing bins in each classroom which is completed by members of our green school committee
4. Reducing general waste by 50% which we hope will be achieved by using the recycling bin to recycle our paper and plastic and by placing our food waste into the compost bin
5. Creating a noticeboard in our school to inform children and staff of the work completed by green schools
6. Designing posters informing children of what items are placed into each bin and these were completed this month by the children of 2nd class and placed on our noticeboard
7. Encourage children to take home any food waste from their lunches
8. Organising an action day to collect litter from around the school and community center which has now been organised for October 26th and children are encouraged to wear green on the day to show their support for green schools.
9. Creating our green school code which has now been decided on as 'Don't be a quitter and pick up your litter!'
There are seven steps to earning every green school flag. Please see the video below by An Taisce on how these seven steps are completed using the green school theme of water.
We look forward to our action day in a couple of weeks and hope to see a great effort made by all to clear the litter from around the school grounds, making our school a greener place and remember 'Don't be a quitter and pick up your litter!'
Our Action Plan consists of nine different parts:
1. Creating a green school committee that was established last year with a combination of parents, students and staff.
2. Organising a three bin system in the classroom which is now up and running
3. Weighing bins in each classroom which is completed by members of our green school committee
4. Reducing general waste by 50% which we hope will be achieved by using the recycling bin to recycle our paper and plastic and by placing our food waste into the compost bin
5. Creating a noticeboard in our school to inform children and staff of the work completed by green schools
6. Designing posters informing children of what items are placed into each bin and these were completed this month by the children of 2nd class and placed on our noticeboard
7. Encourage children to take home any food waste from their lunches
8. Organising an action day to collect litter from around the school and community center which has now been organised for October 26th and children are encouraged to wear green on the day to show their support for green schools.
9. Creating our green school code which has now been decided on as 'Don't be a quitter and pick up your litter!'
There are seven steps to earning every green school flag. Please see the video below by An Taisce on how these seven steps are completed using the green school theme of water.
We look forward to our action day in a couple of weeks and hope to see a great effort made by all to clear the litter from around the school grounds, making our school a greener place and remember 'Don't be a quitter and pick up your litter!'
Dodder Monster Competition
The first and second classes have decided to enter the Dodder Monster Competition. This will involve collecting litter that is typically found beside or in the Dodder river and creating a monster. They must name their monster, tell them where it lives and why it is a threat to the environment. Pictures of the completed monsters will be taken and sent in for entry into a competition where the winner and runner up prizes are a gift token for Rathfarnham book shop. The final date for submission is the 1st of February 2017. We have a volunteer from Dodder Action coming out to talk to the first and second class on Thursday 20th of October to tell us all about it.
Action Day
Photos of our Action Day: Senior Infants
Green Schools Noticeboard |
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The green school's noticeboard is up and running and informs the staff and children of the work we are focusing on in green schools. At the moment we have the posters that 2nd class created on what goes into the recycling and compost bins. We also have information about recycling glass, paper and tins and the effects of throwing your rubbish on the ground instead of the bin. We will be changing and updating our noticeboard regularly.
Using our compost bin
Two members of the Green School committee in second class have been working really hard weighing the bins everyday and emptying the classroom compost bins into our big school compost bin outside. They are always encouraging all the classes to make sure they are using their compost bin for food waste.
Action Day
We had our Action Day on Wednesday the 26th of October. We all wore green to school that day and did lots of fun lessons on recycling and caring for our environment. After lunch we were joined by some volunteer parents and we began litter picking in our hi viz jackets in the school grounds, in the field beside the school and around the community center. It was a great success and we collected lots of bags of rubbish.
Here are some photos of second class all dressed up in green....
Here are some photos of second class all dressed up in green....
Here are some photos of the children out litter picking.....
Look at all the rubbish we collected....
Thanks to all the parents and relatives who volunteered to help us on our Action Day. We all worked really hard to clear Firhouse of litter. It was a great success :)
Mina Swims The Liffey Show
We are really excited to have South Dublin County Council come in and perform a show called 'Mina Swims the Liffey' written by Margaret Callan Bergin for us. The show is based around our flag theme of litter and waste highlighting the pollution in our local rivers. It will be performed for Senior Infants, 1st and 2nd classes in the community centre on Monday the 27th of February
Green School Committee
Our Green School Committee meets once a month to discuss topics related to achieving our green school flag. Our committee consists of two children from each class and two parents, Darren (a parent of a child from 1st class) and Louise (a parent of a child from Junior Infants) and our Green School Coordinator, Jen.
Mina Swims the Liffey
The children in senior infants, first and second classes really enjoyed the performance of Mina Swims the Liffey. It taught us about how polluting our rivers can affect the fish and plant life that live there. We need to make sure that rubbish gets thrown into our bins and not our rivers to help protect fish like Mina!
Our First Green School Flag
We are so very excited to share with you the news that we received our very first green school flag on the theme of litter and waste. Alfie and Béibhinn (from second class and also part of the Green school Committee) along with the Green School Co-ordinator Jen and another teacher in the school Cillian travelled to the Helix Theatre in DCU on Wednesday 24th of May to accept the award and be presented with a certificate and our very own green flag. It was a fantastic day and a very proud moment for our school! It is through the hard work and dedication of all members of our green school committee that this became possible! We stayed true to our code 'Don't Be A Quitter And Pick Up Your Litter!!!'.
Our Second Green School Flag
We have had a very busy school year so far with moving into our new school building. It was through our hard work and dedication last year that we received our first flag on litter and waste. It is a two year program but we are hoping that by the end of 2019 we will receive our second flag on energy. It is a very important theme this time around and energy is wasted everyday which not only costs money but also damages our environment. We are going to make an effort to turn off appliances when they are not being used and to switch off lights when it is daylight outside. We are very fortunate to be in our new building which have sensors built into all classrooms. This ensures that lights are switched off once no movement is detected so if no one is in the room then no light is left on. Lets all make an effort to save energy this year and next year.
Energy Pledge
Here is a pledge for all the green school supporters to not only promise to save energy in school but to promise to make a big effort to save energy at home too! By making that promise and choosing one action to take to save energy at home, you will be one step closer to a healthier, greener environment!
Energy Survey for Parents
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Attention Parents,
Please take the time to complete our energy survey. This will help the Green School Committee to have an idea about energy usage in the home as well as the school. Each entry will greatly help our work towards working to get our second flag. Please enter your contact details on both parts of the survey to allow for data to be collected. Kind Regards, Green School Committee |
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