Inside Education and Health Sciences

By Jessica Proud

The Bombeck Family Learning Center hosted the From Trash to Treasure Recycled Art Show in January, a celebration of creativity, sustainability and community. The event celebrated the imaginative spirit of the youngest learners--infants, toddlers and preschoolers--who learned to create works of art from recycled or discarded materials, and who proved that even the smallest materials can be given a new purpose and made into something wonderful.

This event was made possible by a partnership with the Hanley Sustainability Institute, ensuring that sustainability is incorporated in young learners. The Institute’s mission to promote environmental awareness and education is in line with the vision of the Bombeck Family Learning Center to begin sustainability education at an early age, ensuring children grow up to be more conscious of their role in protecting the planet.

The success of the event was also due to the community collaborators who not only assisted with resources but also helped to build the family connections with the local sustainability initiatives. Other collaborators include Waste Free Dayton, Montgomery County Material Reuse Facility (MCMRF), the City of Dayton and HSI students from Five Rivers MetroParks. These partners informed attendees about waste reduction, recycling and composting education. Student volunteers from Epsilon Nu Tau business fraternity at the University of Dayton and high school students from Chaminade Julienne added a lot of spirit and hard work towards the attainment of the event goals and the overall community participation.

These partnerships not only made the experience better but also emphasized the need to establish a connection between early childhood education and the environment.

These groups and families contributed to the event, and they showed that they are invested in sustainability, not just in the classroom.

The art show consisted of different arts and crafts; all the pieces were created from recycled materials like cardboard, plastic bottle caps, old fabrics and paper. Children proved that, with creativity and resourcefulness and a little imagination, ‘trash’ can easily be made into ‘treasure’. The pieces included vibrant collages, sculptures and crafts that clearly showed how upcycled materials can be reused to create art.

Other than the art exhibit, children engaged in several fun and meaningful gross motor activities. The children played Trashketball, Bottle Bowling and Box Building that help to develop teamwork, coordination and leadership as well as to create a play environment. For those interested in the process of sustainability, the Pulp/Paper Making for Seed Bombs activity taught children to create their own seed bombs from recycled paper, which they could plant in their gardens.

One of the most exciting activities was the Waste-Free Pledge station where children could sign a pledge to reduce waste in their daily lives. This was a great way for families to commit to sustainability and to remind everyone that small changes do make a big difference to the environment.

The From Trash to Treasure Recycled Art Show was a great example of how it is important to incorporate sustainability at a young age. It was through play, creative expression and hands-on learning that the children at the Bombeck Family Learning Center were able to learn about recycling, waste reduction and environmental stewardship. It is never too early to teach children that the generation of tomorrow needs to care for the planet.

The Bombeck Family Learning Center would like to thank all the families, community partners, volunteers and participants for making this event a success and a huge thanks to the Hanley Sustainability Institute for their support. We are excited to see sustainability being introduced to more young learners and look forward to the next generation of environmentalists, naturalists, Earth advocates and changemakers.