Students and staff dressed in green T-shirts dug holes for spruce seedlings near the playground at Reed Ranch School last week.The tree-planting activity was part of the school's afternoon celebration of its most recent environmental achievement.Reed Ranch has attained Jade II status with the Society, Environment and Energy Development Studies (SEEDS) Foundation, a national, non-profit organization that estimates it has reached millions of Canadian students and their families since 1976.“We are a very environmentally friendly school,” said Grade 5/6 teacher Terry Seidel, who got the school involved with the GREEN Schools Canada program in 1999. “Our actions here take a little bit of extra effort, but it's worth it. It has become part of our way of life here at Reed Ranch.”To date, Reed Ranch has completed 1,250 environmental projects, an impressive number considering the school has a student population of 56.A quick tour of the hallways and classrooms provides evidence of the school's commitment to conserving the environment.In Mr. Seidel's Grade 5/6 classroom, there are recycled CDs hanging down from the ceiling, depicting the planets. There are plastic tubs containing red wriggler worms, which are part of a composting program. Students throw in their banana peels, apple cores and other compostable materials, thus creating the rich compost that is used in the school butterfly garden and flowerbeds.Every year, students, families and staff participate in the highway cleanup, which also helps to fund school field trips.Collection containers sit next to the boot room, where recyclables like juice boxes, cans and bottles are gathered. Paper, cardboard and tin cans are also regularly compiled.“We also do an annual birdcount and send in the results,” said Seidel. “Also, whenever a Grade 6 class graduates and leaves, we plant a tree.”The GREEN Schools program provides recognition and focus to a school's environmental efforts, while building a strong school image in the community.“The program encourages students to be environmentally responsible and to take personal action at school and with their families,” Seidel said.“I'm going to recycle when I grow up,” said Davin Markham, a Grade 3 student at the school.Classes undertake projects to enhance the environment and then log their project results and report them to SEEDS. More than 8,000 schools in Canada are involved with the program. “By keeping records of their achievements, schools gradually work toward a certain number of projects in order to become recognized at different levels,” Seidel said. “The next level we're working toward will be Emerald II, with 1,500 projects.”The May 31 celebration included visits and speeches from dignitaries, including Chinook's Edge School Division superintendent Kurt Sacher.“We're proud of Reed Ranch School,” Sacher said. “There's an infectious passion here.”Principal Rudy Durieux said the program has been “a wonderful journey.”“This is part of what we call lifelong learning,” Durieux said. “Terry Seidel has left a lasting impression on the community, and it also fits nicely into the curriculum.”Also present during the celebration was Tracy Fouchier from the Toronto Dominion Bank in Olds. TD is a member of the Friends of the SEEDS Foundation.Other activities during the afternoon included a presentation by Barb Kowalzik, a wildlife biologist at the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation in Madden. Kowalzik brought in Ruby, a two-year-old red-tailed hawk, who perched on her hand during her talk about the difference between pets and wildlife.Later in the afternoon, student Parker Krause stepped into a grizzly bear suit, to demonstrate the distinguishing features of the animal, while a guest speaker from Canadian Parks and Wilderness spoke to the students on endangered species.About 80 trees were planted afterward in the schoolyard, near the playground. Students carried pails of water to provide moisture to the young seedlings, and then covered the soil with wood chips.Green-themed snacks were served, with students and visitors enjoying tree-shaped cookies and green beverages.
