Sustainability a focus of student’s teaching practice
Hayley Rankin is leading the tamariki at Ōpunake Community Kindergarten on their sustainability journey, learning strategies to help children care for the environment and Papatūānuku (the land).
The Bachelor of Teaching (Early Childhood Education) student began her teaching career as a casual ECE reliever when her son was young, and she discovered how rewarding it was to support children’s development.
Her interest in sustainability has been a more recent addition to her practice, developing over the four years she has been at the Ōpunake kindergarten.
She often shares in NZTC Online discussion forums about her centre’s focus on Papatūānuku, kaitiakitanga and reducing contribution to landfill, and how they support children’s connection to the land.
“Teaching tamariki about reducing waste at an early age sets our children up for the future and builds lifelong habits, and they also pass on knowledge to their whānau to make positive changes at home,” explains Rankin.
“Our tamariki are leaders, and the older tamariki also support younger tamariki to learn and engage in our practices.”
Some of the ways the centre educates children about their low waste philosophy is through having no rubbish bins on the floor.
Instead, they have a single bin for their administration area and a second bin for used disposable nappies – although they have recently introduced reusable nappies in the Under 2’s room.
Emptying organic waste into the compost
“Having no bins has forced us as kaiako to be mindful of what we are using, particularly in the craft area. We’ve changed a lot of our resources to organic materials, so we’re able to compost any unclaimed work.”
Paper waste gets shredded and turned into fire bricks for burning in winter, and paper hand towels have been swapped for reusable hand towels that are washed every day.
In the ‘kai room’, food waste is sorted into worm food and chicken food, and any plastics in lunchboxes are sent home.
“As a Green-Gold Enviroschool these are part of our curriculum. Tamariki follow these practices daily, from sorting and emptying compost bins, caring for the worm baths and conserving water, to being aware of their impact on the environment through discussions.
“We’ve all gone on a journey together, and we’re still striving to make improvements even now.”