Earth Hour & More Celebrated by Many of our Schools!

April 26, 2010

Students and staff demonstrated their commitment to the environment during the month of March by participating in Earth Hour in a variety of forms.

The Ministry of Education and World Wildlife Fund partnered to encourage Ontario-wide participation. Earth Hour uses the simple action of turning off the lights for one hour to deliver a powerful message about the need for action on global warming. This year Earth Hour was celebrated internationally on Saturday, March 27 from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Schools and administrative offices were encouraged to turn off non-emergency lights for one hour on Friday, March 26, 2010.

Prince of Wales Public School staff and students participated in Earth Hour by turning off all unnecessary lights, computers and electrical equipment from 9:30 - 10:30 p.m.

College Street Public School staff and students had two recent events- a litterless lunch week from March 7-11, and participation in Earth Hour from 12:00- 1:00 on March 26th. For Litterless Lunch week, daily announcements were made and posters to make students aware of the need to reduce waste were displayed. Prizes were awarded to each student in the class with the least garbage- thanks to EarthCare' s donations! The EarthCare team did spot-checks throughout the Earth Hour, checking for use of any electrical devices in classrooms and other rooms in the school. Lights were turned off in hallways and common areas. They were proud of their record 90% compliance for the entire hour.

Athol Central School staff and students refrained from all unnecessary power from 2 - 3:30-computers, overheads, Elmo’s and lights of course.

At Bayside P.S., the staff and students shut off the lights and computer monitors from noon to 1 p.m. One of the challenges during this one hour included running a scheduled bake-sale to support earthquake victims in Haiti, but it went ahead anyway, using 'natural light' from windows, etc.

Prince Charles Public School in Trenton made connections to literacy by having a mini-poster contest - one winner from each division - detailing what was done for Earth Hour (it was given out as a 'fun' homework assignment). The staff and students are also doing an Earth Awareness Month instead of week with a focus on reducing our carbon footprint. Soon the school will be covered in footprints and what we are doing to make changes in our daily habits.

Together we can make a difference, one hour at a time!