Alicia Wallace
Rossland News
Grade six students of Rossland Summit School learned about where things go when they place them in the trash during a class program titled Beyond Recycling, facilitated by Wildsight.
Wildsight offers educational programs for sustainable living to primary school students. Jess Williams of Wildsight inspired the students to consider the impact of their actions and to make positive environmental changes during the November session.
The program introduces students to the topics of waste, ecological footprint, climate change and energy use.
“This is not your ordinary field trip,” said Monica Nissen, Education Program Manager for Wildsight. “The kids get to be detectives for a day, to solve the mystery of what happens to our waste once we throw it in the trash.”
Students examined the contents of the local transfer station, landfill and recycling depot. “Even with all the fresh fallen snow, Mrs. Heikkilas’ grade six class could see the amount of waste that is disposed of every day at the Mckelvey landfill in Trail,” said Williams, a Beyond Recycling educator.
The class also visited the Trail Bottle Depot in the Gulch where the tour focused on product stewardship for items such as electronics, light bulbs, computers and foam food packaging.
“All the students were pumped to hear about being able to recycle styrofoam and ice cream cartons,” said Williams.
Rossland Summit School was one of eleven schools in the Columbia Basin region that have taken part in Wildsight’s Beyond Recycling program this year. Teachers, parents and kids are giving it top marks. The B.C. Ministry of Education recognizes the curriculum as contributing to science learning outcomes.
For more information regarding educational science and social studies programs that meet the B.C. curriculum please visit www.wildsight.ca or contact Monica Nissen, Wildsight Education Program Manager via email at monica@wildsight.ca or phone (250) 352 6346.