1. An environmental education event dubbed "Green Days" during April's Earth Week which implements environmental education to students in Pre-K through 6th grade and is completely facilitated by 7th and 8th grade students.
2. Styrofoam removal advocacy partnership with Bmore Beyond Plastic and corresponding events.
3. PowerDown! competition and energy events throughout the school year.
4. Outdoor classroom construction and environmental education curriculum using the outdoor classroom.
5. Arlington's Butterfly Garden examining native and invasive species.
Summary
Arlington Elementary/Middle School is part of Baltimore City Public Schools, is located in northwest Baltimore, and serves 540 students in grades PreK-8th.
Over the past three years our school has made significant changes and incorporated many green practices. Our journey began with the creation of our Green Team of students which wrote grants to fund our events' the team has now raised over $11,500 in grants. Our team also explored different methods of incorporating environmental education into our school community. We divided the grades into bands and assigned mentor students to each band. These students worked with teachers to incorporate environmental education into their classes.
The most important part of our work has been the whole school practice that we established. From two-sided printing to One-Switch-Wednesdays, our students went above and beyond to ensure that every level of our school administration implemented green practices. From painting storm drains to PowerDown! days, we implemented new programs left and right. We set up the first recycling program in the school’s history; we restored and built two outdoor classrooms (one focused on herbs and vegetables, and one focused on native species); we created a “concrete” nature trail along the school to locate native species; and we built bird boxes to promote the return of birds to the area. Our school is a healthier environment now that our custodial staff uses green products and our students are participating in the Running and Nutrition Club. Energy conservation has been our most successful program as we have reduced energy use in the school significantly with multiple programs. Our green team has been awarded multiple special recognition awards from the City of Baltimore. We have also received grant funding from the Green Healthy Smart Challenge, Baltimore Energy Challenge, SAKS for Science and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. These awards allowed us to maintain partnerships with organizations such as the Baltimore Zoo, National Aquarium, Phillips Wharf Education Center, and the Rotary. In addition, we have worked with Blue Water Baltimore and the City Department of Public Works on multiple endeavors. The past few years have been challenging, since our school is in the midst of a full renovation and expansion and we are now in a temporary building, but the rewards have outweighed the obstacles. We hope, in the next three years, to implement even more STEAM-related programs that encourage environmental literacy and education as we move into our new 21st Century School.
Keeping Arlington Green, one feather at a time!
SOAR EAGLES, SOAR!
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In our constant effort to do everything Green, Clean and ready for the Team, our motto mimics the school's motto: DREAM WORK MAKES THE TEAM WORK. Be part of our team by contacting us for potential collaborations, partnerships and service learning opportunities. We are always ready for feedback and to talk with anyone interested in speaking with our students or staff.