Learning recycling lessons for life

It may be National Recycling Week, but it is something the children at Margate’s C&K Florence Kindergarten & Preschool actively do every day.

Co-Directors and teachers Emma Dyson and Jen Christie are working with pupils and parents on a range of initiatives to be more sustainable.

These include using much less or, ideally, no plastic wrap and bags; creating worm farms; repurposing items for craft or other uses at the kindergarten and even stuffing cushions with soft plastics.

Solar panels on the roof generate electricity.

Pays to be green

The initiatives are already paying off, with juice from the worm farm sold to parents and the money raised used to buy plants for the herb and vegetable garden.

Ms Dyson says children were also learning valuable lessons about sustainability that were changing behaviours at home and would hopefully stay with them for life.

“We’re teaching them about sustainability because that’s the way of the future – reuse, reduce, recycle and repurpose,” she says.

“It’s part of our philosophy, getting kids to take responsibility for their world. I often say to the children, ‘we’re friends of Planet Earth, so we need to take care of Planet Earth.”

How you can help

Recycled and repurpose items are a big part of craft activities and the kindergarten is always looking for more items.

“We want to let the community know if they have these things to please bring them to us. We’d like it if the community got behind us with these initiatives,” Ms Dyson says.

C&K Florence Kindergarten & Preschool is at Beaconsfield St, Margate. If you have items to donate, phone 3284 5243.

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