Written by: Whitney Hofer - Roosevelt Elementary School Counselor
Roosevelt Elementary school has a student council made up of two students from each class in grades 3-5. Our student council had a meeting in March and decided they wanted to do a school-wide project for Earth Day. The project's purpose was to bring attention to the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling. Students brainstormed and came up with ideas for celebrating Earth Day. After voting on their favorite idea, the winner was a recycled art show. Fifth-grade student council representative Olivia Weller created a flyer that went home to families explaining all about the art show.
Students were asked to make art pieces out of recyclable materials such as; paper products, cardboard, plastics, and cans on their own time at home. They brought their art pieces to the school on Earth Day, April 22nd. The class with the highest percentage of participation in the art show would have a chance to earn extra recess.
In addition to holding an art show, student council members helped spread the word about the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling. They made educational posters which we hung around the school. Students also watched a video of a virtual field trip to a recycling plant to better understand how recycling works.
On the day of the show, Roosevelt's staff were pleased and surprised to see 117 amazing art pieces entered. Mrs. Abramson’s 3rd-grade class had 19 entries, which was the most of any class, earning them extra recess. Our art teacher, Mrs. Yon, awarded 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place ribbons to her favorite art pieces from each grade level, as well as several honorable mention ribbons. The whole school had a great time walking through the gym, one grade at a time, and viewing all the art from 2:20 p.m to the end of the day.
3rd-grade student, Hunter Long, made a castle out of cardboard and string that he spray painted silver and black. He even had a working drawbridge on the castle, and he was awarded first place for 3rd-grade projects. “I had so much fun making my castle. My mom helped me with it, and we worked on it for 5 hours. I am going to make three more recycled art pieces just for fun”, he said. Second-grade student Madelynne Olsson exclaimed, “I went to get my project from the gym, and it had a first-place ribbon on it”! Several students from Mrs. Meschke’s second-grade class declared that they hope we do another art show for Earth Day in the future. This was our first time hosting a recycled art show, and the level of participation and creativity exceeded expectations. It was a much-needed fun event during a school year that felt challenging for many.