Schools Talking Trash

Teachers from several Wilton schools love to talk trash– be it paper, plastic, cans or crayons.

From Middlebrook School to the Children's Day School, Wilton schools showed their environmental acumen during Sunday's Go Green Festival. Booth after booth showed how students and parents alike could cut waste.

At Children's Day School students gathered broken and worn down crayons. They melted them and molded them to look like globes.

"It's the perfect trash to treasure," said Kirsten Peterson of the school.  And a project one could do at home on a rainy afternoon.

Teachers at the day school were on hand Sunday to sell reusable snack and sandwich bags, by Resnackit.com.

"They save on paper and they're convenient," Peterson said. "At $7 a pouch, it's an inexpensive investment when considering how many Ziplocs one can go through in a year."

The small pouches are vinyl lined so they can be sponged clean. The canvas exterior comes in many patterns, from skull and cross bones to bright polka dots.

Middlebrook School music teacher Janet Nobles remembers when the school had no place to toss a can or a bottle. The faculty advisor for the school's recycling club envisioned a recycle bin in every class. After several fundraisers, she and her students achieved their dream.

"Wherever there's a garbage pail in the classroom there's a recycle bin. There's always an option," said Nobles, showing festival attendees the different bins and projects her students are involved in.

Together they raised $4,000 to purchase the bins. Nobles chose to buy the bins from a Canadian company. Although they cost more than their American counterparts, Nobles prefers them because they too are made from recycled plastic.

The school also uses Terracycle, a company that turns empty bags of Frito-Lay and Nabisco products into pencil cases, purses and crafty items. And tabs from cans are separated and sent to the Ronald McDonald House, which sells them to recycling centers and uses the money to fund the program.

Every Thursday the students help sort the bottles and papers because, said Nobles, "when the kids are invested in it, it means something."