In our endeavour to help students acquire skills related to creativity, collaboration, problem solving and innovation, the Environment club was started as one of the club activities in school. This year, the members were engaged in finding solutions to the problem of waste management. They investigated, conducted audits, identified areas for problem solving and eventually came up with solutions which included waste segregation by installing separate bins in classrooms for dry and wet waste, composting wet waste, up-cycling dry waste and leaf mulching for garden waste. They also went on a visit to the Dry waste collection centre and Biomethanisation plant in Jayanagar, Bangalore and were taken through the various processes there.
The students made a presentation about their initiative in the morning assembly and got the entire school to be part of it. The housekeeping staff were made aware of the project and the expectations and they were excited to collaborate in it. Every classroom was supplied with separate bins for dry waste and wet waste and the students practised waste segregation diligently in their classrooms and in the common areas of the school. With the help of the housekeeping staff, the wet waste would then be transferred to the composting bin that the children had prepared and the compost is used as manure for the plants.
The skills learned were creative thinking, analysing, empathy and working collaboratively to arrive at solutions for the future. They initiated a culture of Civic consciousness in the school which will undoubtedly go a long way in making the future inhabitants of the Earth active participants of the community at large.
Watch how our students learned about waste management and solved problems related to it …
Before I get started on Ekya School, I would like to tell a little bit about myself. I was living in a foreign country for seven years. I was told that studies were tougher in India. It was then that I got worried. When I started going to Ekya, I was warmly welcomed by the teachers and my classmates. This made me feel comfortable with everyone. Ekya has a good environment for learning. They emphasize greatly on the positive learning experiences of the students. It would benefit every student. It is a nurturing environment. I came to Ekya because I felt there was something special and positive about it .The teaching method is good and it helps students learn new concepts in a creative way. The teachers are helpful and friendly. They take the time to explain things that we do not understand. Students are happy here. Every student here is unique and has the potential to become very successful. The house group concept was new to me since there were no houses in the school in the country where I came from.
There are house wise competitions, intra-school competitions and inter-school competitions. There are basketball matches, throw ball matches, rangoli making competitions and vegetable carving to name a few. This school has a lot of opportunities and will help many students showcase their hidden talents. I am happy to be in Ekya.
Nidhi A Kulkarni Grade 5 ‘A’
Leave a reply