Benowa State School is committed to reducing its environmental impact and promoting sustainable practices. With a population of 884 students and100 staff, the school has a significant impact on the environment, including waste generation and resource consumption. To address these impacts, the school has developed a
School Environmental Management Plan (SEMP) to outline the measures it will take to reduce its environmental footprint and promote sustainability. This plan considers and refers to the Australian Government Environmental Management Plan Guidelines and seeks to minimise any negative impact on the natural environment.
Below are several inspiring accounts of our students' work led by incredibly talented teachers, to not educate students about a better future, but support them in having their voice heard to impact the future choices this school makes to ensure we build a healthier earth for tomorrow for them to enjoy.
Waste Management: Sustainable Crayons
In 2022, a Year 1 class identified the waste associated with wind-up crayons. They investigated the question 'Where do they come from and where do they go?'. All casings of wind-up crayons were collected from this class throughout the year and counted periodically. Students brainstormed alternatives, collected data on their preferred alternate crayon, investigated the price difference on these new crayons, and created persuasive posters and letters.
These posters and letters were addressed to the school principal requesting the replacement wind-up crayons with their voted preferred crayon onto the book list the following year.
Project Outcome: From 2023, all Year 1 classes will only have sustainable crayons (no plastic case). This is to be gradually incorporated into other year levels.
Waste Management: Sustainable Scrunchies
In 2018, Benowa State School introduced the 'Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow' program into the Year 4 curriculum. This program is a creative way to engage and educate students about the importance of sustainability within our environment, through design thinking. Students were challenged to research and create a sustainable solution to an environmental issue within our local community. Three winners from each class would then present their ideas to a panel. In 2019, three students researched, designed and created the sustainable scrunchie. They realised that over time, students old school uniforms were being thrown out which was adding to the ever-increasing amount of landfill, that was slowly destroying our environment. They also realised that the amount of rubber, plastic and synthetics from normal hair ties and clips that students wore were also adding to problem.
The students created a flyer to explain their idea and presented this to a panel of judges made up of both school and community members. One community member was so impressed she donated $1000 to support the idea. The students organised a whole school collection of old uniforms that families did not want anymore. The response was amazing, with over 150 uniforms handed in to the office. The girls worked hard to unpick, cut and sew over 200 scrunchies to be sold to the school students at the beginning of 2020.
The program was very successful and has had a positive environmental impact on the schooling and wider community through minimising landfill. Uniforms are being recycled and reused; families are purchasing the scrunchies which minimises the amount of store brought hair ties that have extra plastic and synthetic materials; More students are following the uniform policy which minimises uniform breach paper notices to be sent home; Money raised allows for Teacher release time to support the students making the scrunchies.
The 'Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow' project has raised awareness of not only sustainability within the environment, but has armed our younger generation with the knowledge and power to create change.
Waste Management: Re-usable Coffee Cups
As
part of the Year 4 HASS curriculum, students recognised the significance of events that bring about change and its importance to our environment.
During this inquiry, students at Benowa proposed an action for our local coffee suppliers to get involved and reduce the use of single-use coffee cups. Students Lyoto and Manvi, learnt about the Green Caffeine system and began their passionate proposal on changing our waste management culture here at Benowa.
Our annual Sustainable Futures Exhibition showcased students' innovative designs to improve and implement in our local or wider community. During this process we were able to create lots of momentum to implement a change here at Benowa.
Sustainability at Benowa
Here at Benowa we have been educating, researching and promoting the reduction of single use cups. Students have learnt concerning facts about how much waste these types of cups contribute daily to our landfill. With this data, they found effective waste management solutions they could implement with a positive impact.
Students began having conversations with our school leaders to be a part of the change and help reduce single cups being used at Benowa.
As a measure towards this innovation, the leadership team at Benowa gave all teachers a personal sustainable re-useable cup to use at our school.
You will see many staff bringing these cups to and from our morning coffee van or local coffee shops who charge less for using our re-usable cups.
This new change has been widely embraced for a more sustainable future in our school and wider community.
Waste Management: Straws No More
In 2019, students in Year 1 identified a waste management issue within Benowa State School. Students shone a light on the use of single use straws in our school and identified the following concerns with the distribution of this item by our Tuckshop.
- Single use straws are made of soft plastic that would not break down in landfill.
- The straws are very light and can easily blow away or end up around our school yard.
- The straw is provided with one of the most popular items sold at Tuckshop - the slushie, therefore this item made up a significant proportion of our whole school waste.
Students engaged with solutions by:
- Exploring sustainable alternatives to soft plastic materials.
- publicly demonstrating their anti-straw views to the Tuckshop by opting for a slushie with no straw and exercising consumer power by choosing no slushie.
- devising class systems that allowed students to acquire slushies without using any sustainable material, through using metal cups and metal straws brought from home and being responsible for washing up these items.
Students proposed actions and share all their knowledge and opinions by conducting inter-class 'Pair Share' sessions, running a poster campaign around the school and presenting to an audience at assembly.
Project Outcomes:
- Students from other classes accessed our sustainable cups and straws when buying their slushies.
- Our school Tuckshop replaced the single-use plastic straws with single-use paper straws that would break down in landfill.
- Reduction in single-use plastic waste at Benowa State School.
- Student calibrated on a path towards sustainable futures.
Waste Management: The Sustainable Classroom
In 2020, students from Year 1 identified a waste management concern within their classroom. Students drew attention to the heavy use of plastic materials within classrooms, particularly in the form of storage equipment. The identified the following problems surrounding this heavily used material.
- Plastic was the most represented material in the classroom environment for storage solutions.
- Plastic is a material that cannot be disposed of easily because it takes a long time to break down in landfill.
- Plastic materials within the classroom would eventually break or be replaced for newer objects, meaning that they would end up in landfill.
Students investigated solutions by:
- Exploring sustainable alternatives to plastic that could be used in a classroom eg. baskets, cardboard or fabric.
- Upcycling objects from everyday sustainable material and objects that could be used for storage solutions in the classroom eg. boxes, pillow cases for chair pockets or tins.
- Contributing to the design and styling of a sustainable classroom.
Project outcomes:
- The 'Sustainable Classroom Model' influenced the design, choices and storage solutions for the other Year 1 classes.
- Reduction in waste
- Students were calibrated on a path towards sustainable futures.
To see more on our Sustainable Classroom journey, watch our video below:
Waste Management: Innovative Sustainable Fashion Design
As part of our Design Technology project 'Innovative Sustainable Fashion Design' in 2020 students considered innovative ways to re-use materials for the purpose of fashion design. This experience allowed students to demonstrate their creative flair whilst exploring sustainable practices. When we commenced this project, students called on our community to donate unwanted fabrics and materials that would otherwise end up as land fill. After receiving a great response and an abundance of donations of unwanted materials students evaluated and carefully considered the best ways to up-cycle fabrics and materials to use for their sustainable fashion design. Students creatively designed an outfit for a toy they had brought it from home for the purpose of the project.
To share their passion for reducing waste in innovative ways a fashion parade was arranged where students proudly showcased their sustainable designs and creations to a dazzled school community. Their ability to make a difference in our community was evident as students made an impact and influenced positive change and new ways of thinking.
This process allowed the students to influence change here at Benowa State School and in the wider community. Many projects around innovative sustainable fashion design have been undertaken at events such as our Under 8's Day and in our learning environments across P-6.
Waste Management: Birthday Slushies - Shutting Down the Plastic Party
In 2022, students in year 2 identified a waste management concern within their school. Students brought attention to a post Covid, tuck shop practice that provided all students the opportunity to celebrate their birthday by purchasing a class set of Slushie for their peers.
They identified the following concerns within this practice.
- Slushies were dispensed using a
single use cup and straw
- Students were disposing of 25 cups and straws each time a class member celebrated a birthday.
- The school did not use recycling bins therefore biodegradable cups and straws were going to landfill.
- While better for the environment, using recyclable materials would not reduce the amount of waste created.
- Tuck shop data showed that the birthday practice was being accessed by multiple classes and year levels each week which was contributing to a whole school waste problem.
Students engaged with solutions by :
- Evaluating reusable alternatives for the single use materials used by the Tuckshop
- Using evaluations to finding a solution that was sustainable, cost effective and safe
- Creating and maintaining a 'Sustainable Slushie Kit' in the classroom to be used when a class member had a birthday
- Promoting more sustainable Tuckshop offerings such as birthday muffins
Students shared all their opinions, knowledge and proposed actions in a presentation to the Principal. They participated in the creation of an infomercial that demonstrated a new class approach to Birthday Slushies. The infomercial was presented at Assembly.
Project Outcomes :
- The students persuaded our principal, Mr Josey, to share the proposed actions with the school's P&C committee
- P&C funding Birthday slushie kits, complete with a class set of reusable cups and silicone straws, to be rolled out to all classrooms for 2023
- All Students calibrated on a path towards sustainable futures
- Reduction in
single use waste
Waste Management: All That Glitters is NOT Gold
In 2021, students in year 2 identified a waste management problem within their classroom and Benowa State School. Students shone a light on the use of glitter within our classrooms and identified two main concerns surrounding this heavily used school art supply that was abundant in all our art cupboards.
- Glitter is a made from tiny pieces of plastic and therefore was not a sustainable material.
- This micro plastic was very difficult to sustainably dispose of within the classroom and more often ended up loose in our bins, down our sinks or in our environment.
Students investigated solutions by :
- Exploring responsible ways to clean up classroom glitter using playdough, sticky tape or trapping loose glitter in resin or PVA glue.
- Experimenting with ways to make their own glitter out of sustainable materials, such as salt, sand, sugar, flora, food colours and cornflour.
- Advocating against the use of glitter. Students publicly demonstrated at the annual Easter Bonnet Parade, condemning the use of glitter and displaying their GLITTER FREE BONNETS.
Students shared all their opinions, knowledge and new found passion by conducting a 'War on Glitter Expo', in an attempt to persuade others that 'All that Glitters, is not Gold'.
Project Outcomes :
- 10 classes participated in the expo and committed to discontinue their use of glitter in classroom activities or use alternatives
- P&C and Principal officiated a directive that no further purchases of glitter would be made at Benowa State School
- Students calibrated on a path towards sustainable futures
Waste Management: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Paper
In 2022, students in year 2 identified a waste management problem within their classroom at Benowa State School. Students shone a light on the heavy use of paper within a classroom and identified the following concerns.
- Our classrooms were discarding A LOT of paper on a regular basis.
- While a large amounts of sheet paper was put into the recycle bins, many smaller bits, scraps or scrunched paper ended up in our general waste.
Students were looking at Materials and their Properties in Science so they used this curriculum area to explore some solutions to their problem :
- Students explored ways to reuse and re purpose smalls bits of paper out of the general waste bin.
- Students engaged in making recycled paper from paper scraps using 3 methods
- Students described the properties of their hand-made paper in order to evaluate the effectiveness of their paper
Students shared all their journey in an instructional video about making paper which they shared with other classes.
Project Outcomes:
- Students reduced paper waste in the classroom by making paper from discarded scraps
- Students developed their solution mindsets
- Students are calibrated on a path towards sustainable futures