November 2014
Waste in Place 
  

A note from Keep Texas Beautiful's Christine Chute Canul, Senior Program Director:

"Keep Texas Beautiful would like to extend a huge thank you to Julia Scheltens, 5th grade science Educator at McNair Elementary for correlating the Waste In Place (WIP) Activity guide to the TEKS.  WIP is an important tool to KTB and our affiliates across Texas as it is one of the main ways in which we reach the children of Texas and educate on the importance of litter abatement, waste reduction and beautification.  Thank you to Julia for helping KTB spread our vision to make Texas the cleanest and most beautiful state in the nation."

 

"Working on the Waste in Place curriculum was a rewarding project.  I was truly impressed with the material and how it related to the Texas TEKS.  My task was to document the alignment of the TEKS to the curriculum. Having done that, I also grouped some of the activities by the specific TEKS allowing teachers to look for the content another way.  My goal was to document the alignment in such a way that it would be user friendly to teachers.  I think this is a valuable resource that would compliment and enrich  learning for all grade levels.   This was a great opportunity and I enjoyed working with Keep America Beautiful." -Julia Scheltens, Science Educator - 5th grade, McNair Elementary
 
November 15 is America Recycles Day!

Here is information that you can share with your students during the week of November 10!

 

Recycling allows individuals to give new life to the products they use. When manufacturers use recycled materials in their products, not only does it conserve natural resources and reduce waste in landfills, but it also reduces greenhouse gas emissions through energy savings.

  

Recycling

  • Sends 87 million tons of material to a useful second life instead of the landfill.
  • Saves Americans the equivalent of the annual energy consumption of nearly 10 million U.S. households per year.
  • Avoids greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions equivalent to removing more than 33 million cars from the road each year. 

Steel: Recycle your food can and it could become part of a bike, or even a bridge!

 

Aluminum: Your soda can could become part of a stadium! Venues like the Baltimore Ravens football stadium are made with recycled aluminum. Source: Keep America Beautiful

  

Glass: Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to power a television for 20 minutes. That's a whole episode of your favorite show if you don't count the commercials! Source: Glass Packaging Institute 

 

Paper: In 2012, Americans trashed enough paper to cover 20,500 football fields in paper three feet deep. Source: America Forest & Paper Association

 

Plastic: The amount of plastic bottles recycled in 2012 provided the raw material needed to make nearly 8 million XL t-shirts. Source: NAPCOR and American Chemistry Council
RECYCLE BOWL Ends November 15

 

Six D.I.S.D. schools have signed up to participate in a friendly recycling competition sponsored by Keep America Beautiful (KAB) that motivates and encourages sustainable behavior in schools across America. The competition which runs from Oct. 20 though Nov. 15 is an opportunity for your school to invigorate your campus recycling programs, increase recycling rates, and earn points for environmental award money! The local winner will receive five additional bonus points for the Denton Sustainable Schools (DSS) program AND an ALL-SCHOOL ICE CREAM PARTY from Keep Denton Beautiful! There are also prizes for state and national winners.

Current Recycling Weights
July - October 2014
 
Average lbs. Per Student:  
Davis
8.9
Adkins
6.57
McNair
11.39
Denton
5.5
Blanton
3.83
N Rayzor
10.42
Fred Moore
15.1
Borman
10.82
Nelson
7.32
Guyer
3.63
Cross Oaks
10.24
Paloma Creek
6.88
Ryan
2.89
EP Rayzor
5.44
Pecan Creek
5.51
Betty Meyers
5.35
Evers Park
8.31
Providence
6.75
Calhoun
12.57
Ginnings
9.84
Rivera
9.56
Crownover
3.12
Gonzalez
7.16
Ryan
8.73
Harpool
7.92
Hawk
5.12
Savannah
12.97
McMath
6.18
Hodge
21.42
Stephens
8.59
Navo
6.75
Houston
3.25
Wilson
6.64
Strickland
11.76
Lee
12.04
Windle/Gallian
15.22

 

 At the end of June, City of Denton Solid Waste & Recycling staff will award the following points for campuses:

Points Earned         Lbs. Per Student

        10                           20-24

        20                           25-29

        30                           30-34

        40                           35-39

        50                           40+
Top School for 2013-2104!
  

Congratulations to Rivera Elementary for being our TOP School for the 2013-2014 school year! Rivera earned 78 points for engaging in environmental education and having an incredible green team, they also earned 12 points for recycling totaling 90 points!

From left to right: Kathy Jack (Conservation Program Coordinator, City of Denton), Roshaunda L. Thomas (Principal, Rivera Elementary, DISD), Alana Presley (Recycling Education Coordinator, City of Denton), Vicki Sargant (Executive Director for Elementary Academic Programs, DISD)
Dallas Zoo Teacher Training Opportunity

  

Project Learning Tree (PLT) will be offering a teacher training at the Dallas Zoo, on Saturday, December 6.

 

PLT is an award-winning environmental education program designed for teachers and other educators with students in pre-kindergarten through grade 12. PLT uses the forest as a "window" into the natural world, helping young people gain an awareness and knowledge of the world around them, as well as their place within it.

 

PLT is correlated to the K-12 Math, Science, Social Studies, and Language Arts Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).  PLT is also correlated to the National Science and Social Studies Standards; Girl Scout curriculum; and North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) Guidelines for Learning.

 

Click here to see more Educator Workshops offered by the Dallas Zoo.
TURN TRASH INTO ART
  

Calling artists of all ages! You can do your part in reducing litter and have fun at the same time. REVERSE LITTER and The City of Denton are hosting the Reverse Litter Photo Art Contest. The contest is open to all ages and groups, registered Sustainable schools can gain points. Winning entries will be displayed at the Denton Holiday Lighting Festival. Email

watershed@cityofdenton.com or check our Facebook page City of Denton Watershed Protection for more details.

Denton Sustainable Schools