Kids clean up on rubbish

By Miranda Luby
THE kids at Berwick Fields Primary School last Friday proved that young people’s attitudes towards the environment were changing in a big way.
More than 900 students from Prep to Grade 6 were out in the community picking up rubbish for Clean Up Australia Day.
Environmental education teacher Adam Surmacz said that students these days were taught to feel more responsibility for the environment.
“When I was at school picking up rubbish wasn’t fun, but these kids love getting out there and doing something practical for the environment,’ he said.
Despite the rainy weather, the clean up went on and was a big success.
“The kids were a little disappointed with the weather in the morning because they were so keen to get out there, but we moved it to later in the day and it was great,” Mr Surmacz said.
The kids found a huge variety of rubbish and learnt about how to dispose of it correctly.
“They picked up everything from cigarette butts and McDonald’s rubbish to jumpers and even a tricycle,” Mr Surmacz said.
“One kid has found a mouldy loaf of bread and he was so excited you would have thought he struck gold.’
La Trobe MP Laura Smyth said the day was a great opportunity for students, parents and teachers to work together to keep their school clean, while learning about the importance of looking after the environment.
“By contributing to Schools Clean Up Day, we can all create a cleaner and better environment for our local schools,” Ms Smyth said.
Berwick Fields Primary School is celebrating its fifth birthday later this month and learning about the environment remains a huge focus at the school.