Moorlands Primary School Blog Feed - Go Green ECOconference 2016

Introduction

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:49 GMT

Huddersfield's first ECOconference opened with a talk by Helen and Sophie from 'Fair and Funky'. They had with them many items that had been made from things that would otherwise have been thrown away and talked about their aim to change the world, one little step at a time. We went to our workshops full of inspiration and ambition to make our little differences!

Useful junk

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 22:53:34 GMT

Did you know that roughly 6 trees are cut down to provide just one family with paper products for just one year?! Imagine how many trees for your whole street... for your whole lifetime...?!

In one workshop we 'upcycled' junk, including cardboard tubes, scraps of coloured paper and fabric and cut-up cardboard boxes, to make pen pots to take home. Great, eh?!

Our recycled Earth

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 22:54:46 GMT

A lady from 'Grow to School' got us all thinking about how almost everything on Earth is made of recycled material in some way! We explored the grounds around the hall looking for living, dead and dormant organic material, then used some of what we had found to create a piece of art to tell the story of our learning.

How to make a "rubbish" wallet (that's actually quite cool!)

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:49 GMT

1/ Start by washing out and squashing flat a 1l juice carton. Cut off the top and bottom and fold the sides in, as in the photo.

...wallets continued...

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:49 GMT

2/ Next squash your new, narrow carton flat, and fold the bottom third up so that the folded part is the same height as the top part.

... more cutting...

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:49 GMT

3/ With your wallet in an L shape, cut down the creases at the back (as in the photo) but only as far as the top of the folded over bit.

Fold your newly cut single layer down (as in the photo), then cut straight across the remaining sticky-up parts. Can you see it looking more like a wallet now?!

...nearly done...

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 22:31:09 GMT

4/ Use a piece of sticky tape to hold the front and back pouches together, then fold over and shape the front flap.

... and finally!

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 22:24:18 GMT

5/ Finally add a fastener (for example sticky velcro pieces, an elastic band or 2 split pins and a loom band) and your "rubbish" wallet is good to go!

FairTrade

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:48 GMT

In another workshop, we learnt all about the roles of people who work at each step in the process of manufacturing a bar of choclolate, and that FairTrade means that fair pay goes right back to the farmer at the beginning of the story.

mini-mathematicians

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 23:03:05 GMT

We were fascinated to learn about the amazing maths skills of bees. Not only are their wax honeycombs always made from perfect hexagons, but the bees even use their front legs to measure the height of each domed hexagon, to see if the bee embryo inside it will become male or female, and then change what they feed each developing bee accordingly!! Look on the next page to find out more about bees!

Bumblebees

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 08:22:48 GMT

We learned that the huge bumblebees we often see are queens. We already knew that there are many different types of bumblebees, but it was amazing to hold one (dead!) to feel how fluffy they are. As they have an 'exoskeleton' (no bones inside their body) their body doesn't decompose when they die, which is why you often see dead ones still looking fluffy.

What good are bees?!

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 18:31:43 GMT

We learnt all about how vital bees are to the existence of many other living things, in that if they were not there to pollinate flowers or make products such as honey and wax, our world would be very different. Even small changes to our climate or biodiversity can have a massive impact on bees. She gave each of us a packet of wild flower seeds to sow, to help the next generation of bees succeed.

Beeswax candles

Fri, 10 Jun 2016 22:30:34 GMT

The lady from the Beekeepers' Association let each of us make our own candle from beeswax. They smelled heavenly!