Plastic pollution is choking our oceans and their wildlife. Teaching our youngest citizens about this pervasive issue is, therefore, immensely important if we want to have a long-term impact.
To that end, FOH members accompanied Hiba Academy Shanghai’s ‘Little Blue Detectives’ to Fengxian Bay, where they cleaned up the beach with Rendu Ocean, a member of United Nations Global partner for marine litter (GPML) organisation.
This was kick-off activity for the rest of the year’s environmental actions. It saw EY3 and EY4 pupils and parents combing the beach and collecting and classifying all manner of debris that had washed ashore.
They proved to be dutiful stewards of the environment as well, counting a total of 374 pieces weighing in at 12.27kg.
After their coastal clean-up activity, staff from Rendu Ocean taught pupils about the effects that plastics and other rubbish have on marine life and the impact that it has on the environment.
These questions sparked a compelling discussion and gave them pause about where their rubbish goes after they dispose of it. reflection. They even put what they learned into practice.
On the trip back, EY3 pupil Amundsen stared out of the window and said: “Look! There's a plastic bag flying on the road. If it's not cleaned up in time, it will fly into the ocean. This is bad!”
Amundsen’s remarks particularly moved Dora, FOH’s vice president of charity.
We are confident that what these children learned on the beach today, will have a lifelong influence on them. Any action that can bring some good into the world is worth doing.
And FOH has plans to do even more. For instance, we have been helping children in Dahua Yaozu Autonomous County in Guangxi province since 2019. This has taught our children to be more compassionate about those who may not enjoy the advantages they have in life and find ways to help others in need.
At Hiba, charity is not just about donating money. It is about donating time and effort. A concerted act of kindness can be more powerful than just giving money. And both giver and recipient benefit.
The beach is not a traditional classroom, but our Early Year pupils learned a lot on this trip. And had opportunity to apply what they learned in our annual Art Week.
This year, the theme was environmental protection, and the children made works of art using discarded items like used cartons, plastic bottles, broken toys and other recycled household items to make imaginative works. They turned trash into treasure.
In the library, they used what they created as props to play roles in picture books. In the classrooms, their English teachers guided them to think about the consequences of rising sea levels. Several teachers formed the Green Dumb Band and wrote songs teaching the children how to sort recyclables from the rubbish.
At Hiba Hursery Shanghai, we integrates environmental education into class daily, helping children to understand importance of building a sustainable future through in fun and engaging activities. It is one of the many ways we enable learning through play.
What is marine debris? How does it end up on our beaches? How does it impact our ecosystem? Our children may not be able to articulate their answers in detail just yet, but they are, with a doubt, learning that they have the power to make the world a better place.
