Green School

Green Schools

Working Together For a Sustainable Future.

What is ‘The Green Schools’?

The Green-Schools is a student-led programme within a school.

The programme is operated and co-ordinated by the Environmental Education Unit of An Taisce (FEE member for Ireland) and is delivered in our school with the co-operation of Wicklow County Council and Partnership.

Every theme in the ‘Green Schools’ programme is approached and developed over 2 years within the school. Themes are linked to the S.E.S.E area of the primary school curriculum.

What are The Green Schools themes?

The themes are divided into the following:

1. Litter and Waste

2. Water

3. Energy

4. Travel

5. Bio-Diversity

6. Global Citizenship

Green Schools Flag

St. John’s S.N.S currently has a Litter and Waste flag which was awarded in 2018 at a ceremony in D.C.U.

The school is currently working towards a flag for Water theme. We are in the 2^nd year of this theme and are due to receive a flag in 2020.

In order to fulfill the criteria for Greens Schools status there are steps to be followed.

What are the steps to being awarded a Green Schools Flag?

The 6 steps are:

1. Forming a Committee of Students
2. An Environmental Review within the school
3. An Action Plan to further develop awareness of this theme
4. Following an Action Plan as community
5. Monitoring Progress within the community
6. Evaluating all information

Step 1: Forming a Committee.

The Green School Committee

The Green Schools Committee is comprised of students from each class level. There is one full committee member and one substitute for each class.

Applying for the Committee is usually a competitive and meaningful time for the children. They have to stand up in front of their class and explain why they would be a good Committee Member. The teacher then has the unenviable job of choosing a child. We do this as fairly as possible, sometimes inviting another independent teacher to listen to the children and help to choose one.

The pupil voice is of utmost importance in our school. This also gives the children life skill experience.

The purpose of the Committee is:

• To ensure all 6 steps of Green Schools Plan are carried out.
• To give students responsibility and a ‘pupil voice’ and representation.
• To ensure all members of school are heard, including our classmates who can’t come to meetings.
• To link with school management and the community.
• To ensure the Green School programme continues in St. John’s S.N.S

Our Environmental Review

Our environmental review was designed and carried out by the committee about the water usage in the school building.

This included doing an audit of all facilities in the building that used water.

These included toilets, taps, radiators.

We were shocked at the amount of water necessary to run a school building.

The Action Plan in Stages

The action plan included several parts.

1. An ongoing audit on the litres of water used over a 3 day period in the school at regular intervals.
2. A Slogan Competition
3. A Poster Competition
4. Monitoring and Evaluating all of the water usage in the school and how we could cut this down and not waste water.

Poster Competition

There were so many wonderful entries. These were the prize winners.

The Slogan Competition

Don’t waste our H2O

Earth has many years to go!

Wasting Water is just mean.

Saving Water makes you Green!

Live Life Cleaner

By

Making Earth Greener

Slow the Flow.

Save H2O.

Do Earth a Favour

Be a Water Saver!