Part 2: Summary Sheet
Narrative Overview
Waverly Elementary School is once again very proud to apply for re-certification as a Maryland Green School. The activities described and documented throughout our application were accomplished through the efforts of Waverly students, staff, and community members. An activities log was created for each team to record and track environmental curricular connections and best management practices. By working together, our accomplishments have made a positive impact on our entire school community. These contributions will help us to sustain these environmental practices in the future.
During the period from the Fall of 2012 to the Spring of 2015, Waverly Elementary School students have been actively involved in environmental issues in the classroom, on the school grounds, and in the community. So how do Waverly elementary teachers provide inquiry-based instruction that provides students the authentic opportunities to connect with nature? Teacher pose questions, problems, or scenarios rather than simply presenting established facts or a particular path of knowledge. The teacher acts a facilitator to encourage the development of students’ own knowledge and solutions. Curriculum is enhanced and extended to provide students authentic experiences that involve our Green School initiatives.
Our journey continues as the students are actively engaged in sustaining our best management practices. These practices include: waste reduction, habitat restoration, structures for environmental learning, and energy conservation.
At Waverly, we are committed to reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators through our recycling programs. Students, staff, and parents are actively involved in recycling in the classrooms and in the cafeteria. Through these student-driven recycling initiatives: Terracycle and the Elmer’s Glue Stick collection program , we have recycled over 123, 737 juice pouch containers and over 120 glue sticks throughout the 2014-2015 school year. During Earth Week of 2014, we began a composting pilot for the Howard County Public School System. Throughout the Spring, the students collected food scraps and green waste, which was added to create humus to add to our Waverly vegetable and butterfly gardens. Our student led, Green School Club, created info-commercials on how to implement these recycling initiatives and their benefits to the environment. The club has also worked to maintain the vegetable and butterfly gardens by clearing brush and weeds in order to provide a safe habitat for butterflies and other animals.
Our school has formed a valuable partnership with the Watershed Academy through the Howard County Conservancy. Students have been actively engaged in learning activities related to the prevention of erosion on our school grounds. The stewards from the Watershed Academy, in collaboration with the Green School Committee, began the 2014 school year providing community outreach to our families through our FallFest celebration. A booth was set up that offered activities for the students and offered informational tools for families in how to prevent water erosion within our neighborhoods. This partnership has continued to flourish in many ways. The fifth graders learned about ways they can become stewards. The grounds were surveyed by the members to see ways in which we can improve our grounds to prevent water erosion. The Green School Student Committee and stewards from the Watershed Academy have begun the process of working on the installation of a rain barrel. The water captured and stored in the rain barrel will provide water for our vegetable and butterfly garden, in place of our current watering methods. During our Earth Week, the Watershed Academy stewards will lead activities that will engage students in watershed stewardship. Establishing a healthy relationship with our community members has really made a difference in our students’ connection with nature.
At Waverly, we strive to decrease our energy consumption. This is to not only promote stewardship of the planet, but also for the financial benefits it offers our school system and community. The students have created posters that are displayed reminding the students and staff to conserve energy and classrooms and Lights Engineer logos have been provided to each classroom as a visual reminder to turn off the lights when our students leave the classroom. This year, we had a GreNewIt assembly in which ideas were shared to reduce energy and water consumption at school and at home.
Some of these highlights provide a glimpse into Waverly’s commitment to Green School Initiatives. We strive to reduce our environmental impact and to provide environmental experiences and instruction. As suggested by Zenobia Barlow, “Children are born with a sense of wonder and an affinity for nature. Properly cultivated, these values can mature into ecological literacy, and eventually, into sustainable patterns of living.”
During the period from the Fall of 2012 to the Spring of 2015, Waverly Elementary School students have been actively involved in environmental issues in the classroom, on the school grounds, and in the community. So how do Waverly elementary teachers provide inquiry-based instruction that provides students the authentic opportunities to connect with nature? Teacher pose questions, problems, or scenarios rather than simply presenting established facts or a particular path of knowledge. The teacher acts a facilitator to encourage the development of students’ own knowledge and solutions. Curriculum is enhanced and extended to provide students authentic experiences that involve our Green School initiatives.
Our journey continues as the students are actively engaged in sustaining our best management practices. These practices include: waste reduction, habitat restoration, structures for environmental learning, and energy conservation.
At Waverly, we are committed to reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills and incinerators through our recycling programs. Students, staff, and parents are actively involved in recycling in the classrooms and in the cafeteria. Through these student-driven recycling initiatives: Terracycle and the Elmer’s Glue Stick collection program , we have recycled over 123, 737 juice pouch containers and over 120 glue sticks throughout the 2014-2015 school year. During Earth Week of 2014, we began a composting pilot for the Howard County Public School System. Throughout the Spring, the students collected food scraps and green waste, which was added to create humus to add to our Waverly vegetable and butterfly gardens. Our student led, Green School Club, created info-commercials on how to implement these recycling initiatives and their benefits to the environment. The club has also worked to maintain the vegetable and butterfly gardens by clearing brush and weeds in order to provide a safe habitat for butterflies and other animals.
Our school has formed a valuable partnership with the Watershed Academy through the Howard County Conservancy. Students have been actively engaged in learning activities related to the prevention of erosion on our school grounds. The stewards from the Watershed Academy, in collaboration with the Green School Committee, began the 2014 school year providing community outreach to our families through our FallFest celebration. A booth was set up that offered activities for the students and offered informational tools for families in how to prevent water erosion within our neighborhoods. This partnership has continued to flourish in many ways. The fifth graders learned about ways they can become stewards. The grounds were surveyed by the members to see ways in which we can improve our grounds to prevent water erosion. The Green School Student Committee and stewards from the Watershed Academy have begun the process of working on the installation of a rain barrel. The water captured and stored in the rain barrel will provide water for our vegetable and butterfly garden, in place of our current watering methods. During our Earth Week, the Watershed Academy stewards will lead activities that will engage students in watershed stewardship. Establishing a healthy relationship with our community members has really made a difference in our students’ connection with nature.
At Waverly, we strive to decrease our energy consumption. This is to not only promote stewardship of the planet, but also for the financial benefits it offers our school system and community. The students have created posters that are displayed reminding the students and staff to conserve energy and classrooms and Lights Engineer logos have been provided to each classroom as a visual reminder to turn off the lights when our students leave the classroom. This year, we had a GreNewIt assembly in which ideas were shared to reduce energy and water consumption at school and at home.
Some of these highlights provide a glimpse into Waverly’s commitment to Green School Initiatives. We strive to reduce our environmental impact and to provide environmental experiences and instruction. As suggested by Zenobia Barlow, “Children are born with a sense of wonder and an affinity for nature. Properly cultivated, these values can mature into ecological literacy, and eventually, into sustainable patterns of living.”
Top Five Accomplishments
In order to select our top five accomplishments, the Green School Committee and the Green School Student Club met to review the many things that we had initiated and implemented over the past three years.
Partnership: Watershed Academy- Water Conservation
An exciting partnership with representatives of the Watershed Academy, through the Howard County Conservancy, was formed in the Fall of 2014. Karen Nook, a parent at Waverly, and other trained and certified stewards met with representatives from the Green School Committee to share ideas of what Waverly could incorporate throughout the year to encourage water conservation and to reduce water pollution. At our PTA Fall Fest event, representatives from Watershed Academy and the Green School Committee set up a booth that provide activities related to water run-off. While the children participated in the game and craft, valuable information was provided to parents on seven simple strategies they could implement to reduce storm water pollution. Also, the stewards shared, using a map, where our communities water sources are and how these connect to the Chesapeake Bay. In addition, during the winter, the Watershed Academy presented information to the fifth grade students how they could be good stewards of our water resources and how to prevent water run-off in the community. The Watershed Academy surveyed our school property and offered ideas of how we can reduce our impact on the environment. We are currently working with our partners to install a rain barrel at Waverly and plan to offer suggestions to the architects who are renovating and making additions to our school. In April, representatives from the Watershed Academy will provide demonstrations to the students which include: how to install a rain barrel and how to protect one of our most precious water sources , the Chesapeake Bay.
Curriculum and Instruction: Earth Week
In April 2014, our school celebrated Earth Week by kick-starting schoolwide initiatives and engaging in various environmentally friendly activities. To begin the week, Alicia Moore, Recycling Program Coordinator for Howard County, presented to the students ways in which our school could lessen our impact on the landfill and how we could recycle at Waverly. During the week, students were encouraged to walk to school, to wear green to show pride in being a Green School , to pack a waste free lunch, and to participate in a trash pick-up on the school grounds. In the cafeteria, students recycled juice pouch containers and collected scraps for our newly purchased compost bins. Classes learned about composting in the classrooms through a PowerPoint presentation. Also, the students were encouraged to visit the courtyard gardens to participate in composting. The teachers connected Earth Day activities with their science curriculum and taught a variety of lessons. To reduce our paper consumption, electronic resources were sent to each grade level as well as communications to families which included environmental connections.
Earth Week Flyer
Structures for Learning Environment: Demonstration Garden
Being a Green School adds to our school’s relationship with and our responsibility to the Waverly community. As our Green School Committee met it occurred to us that besides being committed to teaching our students how to improve the environment, we realized the importance of good nutrition. What emerged from our discussions was the idea of a demonstration garden and an outdoor laboratory for science experiments.
A proposal was sent to Mr. Greg Connor, Assistant Manager – Ground Services. The intent of the proposal was to get permission to build and maintain a vegetable and berry garden in the enclosed courtyard at Waverly. The proposal presented many “green” components which could be shared with both our students as well as adults in our community. In addition, we asked our PTA to help sponsor the garden and they agreed.
Early in the Spring of last year, we received permission to build a smaller version of the original garden plan. Our Waverly Community Garden supports Green School principles:
Waste Reduction: Composting
In the Spring of 2014, Gregory Connor of the Building Services, granted our request to pilot a composting initiative at Waverly. In conjunction with the PTA Green School Committee, the funds were provided to purchase a composting bin. The objective was to not only use the soil to create a sustainable garden in our courtyard and to encourage compost recycling in the cafeteria, but also to educate the students and families on the benefits of composting at home. A PowerPoint presentation was created by to explain composting and how to collect food scraps in the during the lunch shifts. Signs were made and placed in the cafeteria to clarify that food items that could be added to the compost bin. The Student Green School Committee, made up of 42 student representatives, began the process of turning it on a daily basis. Gradually, various grade levels have assumed that responsibility. We plan to use this soil this Spring in our demonstration garden.
Partnership: Watershed Academy- Water Conservation
An exciting partnership with representatives of the Watershed Academy, through the Howard County Conservancy, was formed in the Fall of 2014. Karen Nook, a parent at Waverly, and other trained and certified stewards met with representatives from the Green School Committee to share ideas of what Waverly could incorporate throughout the year to encourage water conservation and to reduce water pollution. At our PTA Fall Fest event, representatives from Watershed Academy and the Green School Committee set up a booth that provide activities related to water run-off. While the children participated in the game and craft, valuable information was provided to parents on seven simple strategies they could implement to reduce storm water pollution. Also, the stewards shared, using a map, where our communities water sources are and how these connect to the Chesapeake Bay. In addition, during the winter, the Watershed Academy presented information to the fifth grade students how they could be good stewards of our water resources and how to prevent water run-off in the community. The Watershed Academy surveyed our school property and offered ideas of how we can reduce our impact on the environment. We are currently working with our partners to install a rain barrel at Waverly and plan to offer suggestions to the architects who are renovating and making additions to our school. In April, representatives from the Watershed Academy will provide demonstrations to the students which include: how to install a rain barrel and how to protect one of our most precious water sources , the Chesapeake Bay.
Curriculum and Instruction: Earth Week
In April 2014, our school celebrated Earth Week by kick-starting schoolwide initiatives and engaging in various environmentally friendly activities. To begin the week, Alicia Moore, Recycling Program Coordinator for Howard County, presented to the students ways in which our school could lessen our impact on the landfill and how we could recycle at Waverly. During the week, students were encouraged to walk to school, to wear green to show pride in being a Green School , to pack a waste free lunch, and to participate in a trash pick-up on the school grounds. In the cafeteria, students recycled juice pouch containers and collected scraps for our newly purchased compost bins. Classes learned about composting in the classrooms through a PowerPoint presentation. Also, the students were encouraged to visit the courtyard gardens to participate in composting. The teachers connected Earth Day activities with their science curriculum and taught a variety of lessons. To reduce our paper consumption, electronic resources were sent to each grade level as well as communications to families which included environmental connections.
Earth Week Flyer
Structures for Learning Environment: Demonstration Garden
Being a Green School adds to our school’s relationship with and our responsibility to the Waverly community. As our Green School Committee met it occurred to us that besides being committed to teaching our students how to improve the environment, we realized the importance of good nutrition. What emerged from our discussions was the idea of a demonstration garden and an outdoor laboratory for science experiments.
A proposal was sent to Mr. Greg Connor, Assistant Manager – Ground Services. The intent of the proposal was to get permission to build and maintain a vegetable and berry garden in the enclosed courtyard at Waverly. The proposal presented many “green” components which could be shared with both our students as well as adults in our community. In addition, we asked our PTA to help sponsor the garden and they agreed.
Early in the Spring of last year, we received permission to build a smaller version of the original garden plan. Our Waverly Community Garden supports Green School principles:
- The rows are built in raised beds that help prevent any erosion problems.
- The wood to build the raised beds is from a local mill that cuts oak boards to your specifications.
- The PTA bought a device to help decompose waste materials into rich and healthy compost.
- A drip irrigation system is used to maximize plant growth while saving water.
- All of the vegetables are grown using organic farming techniques.
Waste Reduction: Composting
In the Spring of 2014, Gregory Connor of the Building Services, granted our request to pilot a composting initiative at Waverly. In conjunction with the PTA Green School Committee, the funds were provided to purchase a composting bin. The objective was to not only use the soil to create a sustainable garden in our courtyard and to encourage compost recycling in the cafeteria, but also to educate the students and families on the benefits of composting at home. A PowerPoint presentation was created by to explain composting and how to collect food scraps in the during the lunch shifts. Signs were made and placed in the cafeteria to clarify that food items that could be added to the compost bin. The Student Green School Committee, made up of 42 student representatives, began the process of turning it on a daily basis. Gradually, various grade levels have assumed that responsibility. We plan to use this soil this Spring in our demonstration garden.
Waste Reduction: Recycling
In collaboration with Green School Committee PTA Liaisons, students and staff began to collect juice pouch containers through Terracycle in the Spring of 2014 and Elmer's Glue sticks in the Fall of 2014 . Over 123,737 pouches and 117 Elmer's glue sticks were collected, boxed, and sent to be recycled. In order to maintain a concerted effort in this recycling initiative, the Green School Student Committee created short skits about these recycling programs (see below). In April, as part of a new Waverly collection drive, clothing, regardless of condition, will be sent and recycled. At Waverly, we are working to reduce the amount of waste that goes into our landfills and incinerators. This is especially pertinent to our community, since our many of our families live right next to the Alpha Ridge Landfill.
In collaboration with Green School Committee PTA Liaisons, students and staff began to collect juice pouch containers through Terracycle in the Spring of 2014 and Elmer's Glue sticks in the Fall of 2014 . Over 123,737 pouches and 117 Elmer's glue sticks were collected, boxed, and sent to be recycled. In order to maintain a concerted effort in this recycling initiative, the Green School Student Committee created short skits about these recycling programs (see below). In April, as part of a new Waverly collection drive, clothing, regardless of condition, will be sent and recycled. At Waverly, we are working to reduce the amount of waste that goes into our landfills and incinerators. This is especially pertinent to our community, since our many of our families live right next to the Alpha Ridge Landfill.