1. Throw away trash from cutting in a trash can, instead of a recycle bin.

2. Not re-using containers, such as plastic soda bottles and milk boxes, but instead, throwing them away.

3. Not always turning out the lights of my classroom when we leave the room.

4. Using paper more than the interactive white board, dry-erase board, or mini-chalkboard.

5. Throwing away newspapers and advertisements from the mail, instead of re-using them int a learning station.

Now that I have identified ways that I am not “being green” in the classroom, I have ideas of ways I can be green.

1. Compost paper trash and make new paper with it..

2. Use cans, soda bottles, juice boxes, and milk containers as crayon and pencil holders and craft items.

3. Have a student be in charge of turning off the lights each time we leave the classroom.

4. Have mini-dry erase boards, mini-chalkboards or laminated white poster-board pieces (cheaper than mini-white boards) for students writing response. I could even have them turn in thier writing/drawing and grade it. Not everything graded has to be sent home, right?

5. Lastly, for now, I will use newspapers with the die-cut machine, as book covers, and for finding sight words with highlighters.

I think I can commit to these simple, yet dramatic choices, which will benefit our world one classroom at a time. My goal is to have students master our Texas Kindergarten standards of practicing ways to be a conservationalist. I also want my students to teach and encourage their families to conserve, re-use and recycle at home too!