One of the important things we can teach our students is to be environmentally conscious and how to take care of the planet. As they become the future leaders in their world, building this foundation of care and concern for the world around them will encourage them to make decisions and influence others to not only maintain our current environment, but improve it as well. Lessons in the classroom help build this foundation of environmental awareness, and our teachers have advised and help to guide student-led efforts as well.
Let’s take a look at ways our teachers have guided their students in learning about taking care of the environment, both in the classroom and out in the local community.
Earth Day Projects at BASIS International School Shenzhen
In honor of Earth Day on April 22nd, primary students at BASIS International School Shenzhen began their Earth Day projects early in the month. In order to help the students better understand the natural resources on earth and their application in life, students in grades 1 – 3 went to the Sea World Culture and Arts Center in Shekou for a “design journey” last week. The children visited the “Fashion from Nature” exhibition and made their own collages using magazines and old recycled objects.
The “Fashion from Nature” exhibition presents an unprecedented fashion journey with 400 pieces of global fashion treasures spanning 2,300 years of history. It illustrates how designers get inspiration from nature and how fashion affects nature. During the exhibition, the students marveled at the outerwear made of beetle shells, and admired the gorgeous clothing made of pineapple fiber. They were full of curiosity, asked many questions, and learned many interesting things.
This fashion journey allowed students to learn more about the history of Chinese and Western clothing, explore the relationships between nature and fashion, and cultivate their perception of silhouettes, colors, materials, and other fashion elements through the form of collage. BASIS International Schools encourages children to care about the global environmental issues and explore ways to live in harmony with nature. Additionally, BASIS International Schools empowers students through art and design and helps students realize they can make a difference through their own efforts.
Ms. Jenny Zhang is an Elementary Learning Expert Teacher at BASIS International School Shenzhen.
Environmental Protection Project at BASIS International School Hangzhou
We started to plan the environmental protection project last December. I can still remember arriving 40 minutes earlier than usual on what was the coldest winter day. Shivering, we walked toward the street near the school, assuming that the first trial would be finished in about 5 minutes since there was very little visible trash on the street. It took us half an hour to collect a total weight of 4.5 kg of trash in the end, all of which were plastic snack packages. They were so small that we needed to dig deep in the bushes to retrieve them.
We have continued the project every Tuesday and Friday morning thereafter.
It’s a shock to not see any trash on the street, then to discover how much there really is when intentionally searching for it. Littering has negative impacts on both our own health as well as future generations. As a result, everyone should put significant effort into environmental protection to save our planet.
Daniel X., Grade 11 student
An Environmentally Friendly Campus at BASIS International School Bangkok
Innovative campus design features at BASIS International School Bangkok also demonstrate our commitment to not only educating our students about the environment, but reducing our buildings’ impact as well. In January 2021, new solar panels were installed on the school’s roof. These new panels, combined with other environmentally friendly features of the campus, will result in 75% better energy efficiency when compared with a typical building.
The school’s swimming pool is also heated by utilizing the heat by-product of the air-conditioning system. This further reduces the amount of energy used by the campus and ensures nothing goes to waste. Even the sports fields have been designed to use natural turf with drought and pest resistant grass, resulting in less maintenance and chemical treatment.
All of these lessons and initiatives across our network work together to ensure our school communities remain conscious of, and educate our students about, ways we can contribute to help our environment and protect the planet. Earth Day is an important reminder of this, and we are proud to see our teachers and students applying this knowledge in their lessons and daily lives.
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