ENVIROlympics 2018 at West Pictou!

The world is watching the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. Mme Brown’s class at West Pictou was inspired by the Olympic Games and started an initiative for all students on the lower floor of their building: The Green Team is organizing the first-ever ENVIROlympics!

Each participating class has created a three-word team name that demonstrates strength and relates to the environment. Class names include Born Feisty Green, Extreme Clean Team, The Garbage Gangsters, The Green Meanies, Happy Helping Hands, Juice Box Bandits, Mighty Mother Nature, The Recycle Masters, The Savage Saplings, and Super Sonic Cleaners.

West Pictou Consolidated kicked off the ENVIROlympics on February 9th, the first day of the Winter Olympics, by celebrating Sweater Day! This event encouraged everyone to put on a warm sweater and turn down the heat to save energy. Did you know that 80% of residential energy use in Canada is used to heat our homes? You can save energy and money by celebrating Sweater Day at home too!

The Green Team has planned a busy, fun-filled schedule for the week. Many of the challenges work towards helping the Earth, while others help ensure a safe and happy school for all. Here are some of the planned activities:

Monday – Lights-Out Challenge: Use natural light sources when possible and turn off unnecessary lights.
Tuesday – Unplug Challenge: When not using electronics, unplug them!
Wednesday – Homemade Valentines or Collection Boxes Challenge: The Green Team will count how many students make their own Valentines or collection boxes with upcycled items or decorations.
Thursday – Flag Day: Create a flag or decorate a country flag using recycled materials.
Friday – Winter Walk Day: Students will head out for a walk to connect with nature.

The Green Team will be selling hot chocolate one day to support the Aberdeen Hospital Palliative Care. Students are encouraged to bring their own reusable mugs! The Green Team will also be selling cookies to do more to support the hospital on Tuesday, February 13th.

Upcycled medals made by the Green Team will be awarded to winning teams! Throughout the week, the school office will be awarding classrooms for hallway and classroom tidiness too. Highlights will be shared on a bulletin board also featuring classroom achievements and medal standings. Other challenges and competitions in the ENVIROlympics include: 

• Make a recycled Olympian toque
• Build a tower using bottle tops 
• A Trashion Show: Outfits will be designed and made from recyclable materials. Results will be modelled at the school. Check out this Trashion Show video from Detroit.
• Sort The Waste Challenge: Do you know where an empty juice box goes? How about the straw? This challenge will test students’ ability to properly sort their daily waste.
• First class to finish lunch, get dressed and get outside
• Neatest hallway section
• Quiet and single-file line-ups
• Litterless lunch challenge: Have you noticed how much waste we often bring in a lunch? Learn simple ways to waste less with tips and tricks from your Green Schools NS Engagement Officer! West Pictou will be getting some support with this by inviting their local Engagement Officer for a virtual visit.

Even though the Winter Olympics have already started, it’s not too late to host the ENVIROlympics at your school! Don’t have the time for all of these amazing challenges? No need to fret. You can simply choose one or more challenges to try at your school, or come up with your own green challenges and awards! Check out this recent story, “Green Challenges,” for a few more ideas. We look forward to sharing more news over the coming weeks as West Pictou competes in the ENVIROlympics!

~Pamela Chandler,
Engagement Officer