Recycling Plastic Bottles- idea for summer holidays!

Well the summer holidays are almost here and no doubt many parents will be wondering how on earth they're going to keep their little darlings occupied for a whole 8 weeks? It's a fair question!

With the Irish weather as unpredictable as it is, you can be guaranteed there'll be a few rainy days where everyone will be stuck inside and the kids will be bored....so with that in mind, I thought it might be worth posting a simple idea that perhaps some of the kids would be interested in....

Have a look at the following link: http://www.sealrescueireland.org/blog/ecobricks

Seal Rescue Ireland have an initiative to encourage recycling of plastic bottles by converting them into "eco- bricks". These bricks can then be re-used and turned into furniture or even to build walls. The idea is to raise awareness of unnecessary plastic waste and to hopefully reduce the amount of plastic waste we produce.  Lots of sea animals, including seals,are getting entangled in plastic waste or ingesting plastic waste which can be fatal. This idea might be a way to re-use and -up-cycle some of the plastic bottles that end up in your recycling bin or rubbish. However, bear in mind that Seal Rescue Ireland have to assess the weight/quality of the ecobrick before accepting it so they will NOT accept bricks sent to them via post!

Green School Flag event in City North Hotel, Dublin.

Last Thursday, the 23rd of May, 2 members of the Green Schools Committee, Matthew Watson and Hannah Foy, attended an event in Dublin where they were presented with a Green Flag in recognition of the work done on the theme of Energy. They were accompanied by Ms Grisewood and Bernie and the day consisted of registration and a delicious lunch, followed by an award ceremony where various  members of An Taisce spoke about the importance of the Green Schools Programme, particularly given the challenges presented by Climate Change. Minister Damien English was also in attendance and congratulated the children on their hard work.  The children were then presented with their new flag and certificate.

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Ditching Plastic!

Did you know that one million plastic bottles are bought around the world every minute?

According to Sandra Laville and Matthew Taylor of the Guardian, 

"More than 480bn plastic drinking bottles were sold in 2016 across the world, up from about 300bn a decade ago. If placed end to end, they would extend more than halfway to the sun. By 2021 this will increase to 583.3bn, according to the most up-to-date estimates from Euromonitor International’s global packaging trends report."

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/28/a-million-a-minute-worlds-plastic-bottle-binge-as-dangerous-as-climate-change

You might say to yourself, "So what?" "How does that affect me?" Well, much of what we throw away in the form of plastic does not actually get recycled and ends up in landfill or in our lakes, rivers, seas and oceans.  The danger here is that as plastic breaks down over time into micro-plastics, it is ingested by sea animals and birds and is now ending up in our food chain (in fish and shellfish)! We have seen the impact they have caused on large sea mammals such as seals and whales but the impact on human health in the long term can only be imagined!

As part of a drive to reduce our dependence on and over -consumption of plastic bottles and plastic packaging, we are asking you as parents to consider approaching your local supermarkets to urge them to go plastic-free and to avoid buying bottled water for your household. You can invest in a reusable bottle instead. 
For more ideas on little things we can all do to end plastic pollution and calculate your own plastic usage, have a look at the following link:https://www.earthday.org/2018/06/08/what-you-can-do-to-end-plastic-pollution/ 

P.A.

Many thanks to our P.A. for organising two great trips today! What a brilliant week we've had!

Please click HERE to support their fundraiser! Money raised will be used for a Garden Project, including the purchase of a polytunnel. A school garden would be a fantastic resource for our school and would provide amazing opportunities for hands-on and practical learning!





Have a look at the photos from today. Juniors and Seniors went to the Playcentre in Trim, and 1st-6th Class went to the Aviva to see the Irish Rugby team train!

Mountlucas Windfarm Visit Day 2

Senior pupils (3rd-6th class) from Ms Kilrane and Mr Larke's room along with Ms Grisewood went on a tour to Mount Lucas Wind Farm in Co Offaly and thoroughly enjoyed our visit. The trip was educational AND fun and Catherine, our guide, was brilliantly entertaining throughout. First we had a talk about Climate change and the importance of renewable energy forms such as wind energy and then the pupils had the opportunity to try out some of the interactive games and quizzes in the Learning Hub and see a wind turbine up close (the average height is about 100 metres, just a little smaller than The Spire on O'Connell Street in Dublin)! The highlight of the tour was undoubtedly the chance to wear a virtual reality headset and experience for yourself what it's like to be inside a wind turbine and see the landscape from the very top of a turbine.... pretty cool and you'd need a head for heights!!! Check out some of our pictures from the day below....

Mountlucas Wind Farm Trip

Junior Infants to Second Class had a brilliant time yesterday at Mountlucas Wind Farm! Catherine met us off the bus and she taught the children loads about energy and Mountlucas. Have a look at some photos and videos from the trip. Thank you to Ms. Grisewood and the Green School Committee for organising the trip!

Catherine giving an energy talk to the children  

Testing different wind turbine blades

Interactive Quiz

The children got to see what it is like inside and at the top of a wind turbine using these Virtual Reality headsets!

Very excited children on the way to see a wind turbine up close!

Winner of the Energy quiz!