Tree Planting November 2, 2011

Congratulations Prince of Wales!

October 1, 2010.  

Prince of Wales Public School 

 Gets Two Green Thumbs Up  

When Principal Pam Voth cut the ribbon for Prince of Wales Public School’s outdoor classroom earlier this year, it was a dream come true for the entire school. “We knew that an outdoor classroom could offer so much to our students. We are so happy that this dream is now a reality,” she said.  

Since June when the project was completed, it has been a hub of activity at the school. From the students in the science program who hatched butterflies, to the gardening club members that plant and maintain the garden’s native species, to the numerous classes that are held on the rock groupings in the warmer weather, the outdoor classroom is a learning tool in itself.  

“For Prince of Wales students, creating a green space in the city fosters lessons of responsibility for our environment. Feeling empowered by working on this project at school, our students have realized that they can create similar environments in their homes and communities. Our outdoor classroom has helped our students to understand mutual respect and appreciation,” said Voth.  

The appreciation for Prince of Wales’ outdoor classroom extended to the City of St. Catharines as well. On Wednesday, September 29, the Eco-Leaders from the school were honoured with a coveted Trillium Award. The awards acknowledge Excellence in Landscapes, Heritage Preservation and the Arts in St. Catharines. Prince of Wales’ won the Education Award for "Greening".   

Prince of Wales Public School thanks its many partners for making their dream come true:  TD Friends of the Environment, Niagara Community Foundation, Teacher’s Credit Union. Education Foundation Niagara, Walker Brothers Quarry, Green Apple School Program, Sassafras Farms, NTEC . 

Prince of Wales ECO School

Prince of Wales is proud to have been chosen as an "ECO School" again this year. Last year, we selected an "ECO Team" consisting of Ms. Sitko, Mrs. Toews-Peplinski, Ms. Crickmore, Mrs. Douglas, Mrs. Maybee, Mrs. McKay -Cotton and various students in the early part of the year. A school audit was conducted in late September by part of our " ECO Team" to see where we stand in the areas of Energy Conservation, Waste Management and School Ground Greening. We achieved 'GOLD'! To reach this goal this year, we will have to work together to shut off lights and computers when not in use, continue to recycle and compost and tend our garden and protect our newly planted trees. ‘Litterless Lunch’ weeks will begin again soon. Last Year, Mrs. Yeager - Bartleet’s grade 6 class was the first class to be awarded the coveted ‘GOLDEN RECYCLING BIN’ for least amount of garbage and proper recycling protocol. Students can earn "ECO Bucks" for these types of activities and use those ‘bucks’ to purchase items from our "ECO Store" on Friday mornings. For each book that a student reads, we place a leaf (book) on our "ECO Tree of Reading". When we reach 500 books read, we will receive a tree to plant in our schoolyard. In April, Prince of Wales will be giving an award to the family that shows us they’ve been “Going Green”. Document everything green that your family does and write us an essay in April. Starting in November, we’ll be holding an “Earth Hour’ once a cycle to do our part in conserving energy. Teachers are starting to work on their classroom "ECO Corner" and submitting their "Eco Activities" into our School ECO Log. With the holiday season just around the corner, you’ll soon see our classroom doors adorned with an environmentally friendly theme. Mrs. McKay -Cotton and the parent council are looking into an ECO friendly fundraiser for the future. As you can see, we’re very excited about everything 'GREEN' that’s happening in our school. Staff members are even reporting to me that they’ve become very 'GREEN' at home as well. More and more students are coming with reusable water bottles and staff with reusable coffee mugs. That might save them from becoming the next face on our “WANTED" poster. I can feel GOLD status in the air!