April 23, 2010
Earth Day was part of a series of service learning activities included in our month-long Earth Celebration.
We hope you will take the time to conserve, reduce, recycle and preserve our Earth this week and always!
Earth Day was part of a series of service learning activities included in our month-long Earth Celebration.
For weeks we broadcast our public service announcements to raise awareness on the environment. We made environmental bulletin boards that offered solutions to what one person can do to protect the environment, conserve energy, reduce waste and prevent global warming.
On Earth Day, Sunrise Elementary students from Mrs. LaChance's service learning class joined us in a day long celebration. Zoology students presented a workshop on endangered species. Then they took the students on a tour of the wetlands where they discovered some reptiles and wildlife.
Council and academy students have been making purses, wallets and key rings from Capri Sun pouches, making bracelets from soda can tabs and rain sticks from paper towel and gift wrap tubes. We sold our recycled goods to raise money for the academy. We also taught the Sunrise students how to make necklaces using rolled beads made from magazine pages.
The Green Team, our school's service club that promotes recycling at TCHS, led the Sunrise students in making t-shirts with environmental and Earth Day themes. Academy teachers including Mr. Robbins, Mr. Gardner, Ms. Nason, Mrs. Martyny, and Mr. Clark also helped with Earth Day!
Walt Disney World provided Sunrise students with beautiful Environmental Hero Disney pins. Disney has played an important role in our academy service learning projects for the last two years by awarding Mrs. Doromal $28,000 for service learning.
More Earth Celebration
For three days academy students also went to the Enzian Theatre in Maitland where they watched environmental films. Over 350 students participated in the filmfest that was provided by our partner the Global Peace Film Festival. Documentary film instructor, Lisa Mills from the University of Central Florida screened her documentary, Dear Mr. Gore:
Filmmaker Josh Hansbrough from Birdman Productions showed his film, One Village, Same Ocean:
Both films had Florida environmental themes. Being able to question the filmmakers and interact with them gives the films more depth.
This personal narrative documentary uses the director’s bicycle ride to work as a vehicle to explore fear and global warming. The film was shot over a period of two years in Sweden, Denmark and Orlando, Florida. It is a contemplative response to An Inconvenient Truth and provides a unique perspective on one person’s attempt to reduce her carbon footprint and overcome fear. She wonders, “Will Americans ever be able to give up personal freedom for the good of the planet?” Her journey to the answer takes the viewer on a humorous bike ride. Along the way she meets Swedes, Danes and many young people who aren’t afraid of giving up their cars. But she discovers that the reasons they ride may not be directly related to their concerns about global warming. The film features a bicycle ride with the Mayor of Orlando and music by Danish electric violin sensation Mads Tolling.
Dear Mr. Gore was an artistic film that shows the need to have more bicycle-safe streets in our city. The contrast between European attitude towards bikers and American's attitude is very vast! The music was fun and throughout much of the film the filmmaker poked fun at herself.
As a cruise ship threatens to move into Mayport Village, residents and supporters band together to show that community, livelihood, environment and health cannot be bargained for. Journey the seas with shrimpers, and unveil the area's astounding lost history. This is the story of a small fishing village fighting the powerful cruise ship industry. Will these ships continue polluting the very places they promote visiting? Or will one camera and a wealth of knowledge unite supporters in protecting the ocean and the fishermen left along its’ shores.
After the film was shown, Josh asked us questions about the film. He gave away DVDs to the students who got the questions correct. Mayport is only 2 hours from Orlando, but most of us have never been there! It is historical significant to our state. This film showed that people can unite to stop the destruction of their village. The music in this film was also enjoyable.
We hope you will take the time to conserve, reduce, recycle and preserve our Earth this week and always!
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