Euclid Middle School’s eighth grade environmental science students recently put their passion for sustainability into action. They showcased creativity, collaboration, and community impact through a hands-on Eco Fair as part of their “Rethink Your Rubbish” challenge in partnership with the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance (DZCA).
Environmental science teacher, Julie Phelps-Bradbury, teaches this elective course with a goal of helping students explore real-world environmental concepts through service learning. The class partnered with the Denver Zoo as part of its conservation outreach efforts, participating in the Zoo’s semester-long sustainability challenge.
Students launched the project with a field trip to the zoo in October, followed by an on-campus waste audit led by zoo educators. Throughout the semester, students studied the “5 Rs” of waste management: rot, refuse, reduce, reuse, and recycle. This has culminated with the final project designed to help the school community shift waste habits.
One of the culminating projects students voted to create was an Eco Fair, which was selected and held the week before winter break in Euclid’s makerspace. The fair featured seven carnival-style games made entirely from reused materials, along with student-designed information stations focused on topics students had researched.
“It was awesome to see how engaged students were; not just the 8th graders who created the fair, but the younger students who came to participate in the fair’s games and trivia,” said a district staff member who visited the fair.
As part of the challenge’s mission to rethink waste, the DZCA donated 40 pounds of leftover candy from its “Boo at the Zoo” event. Rather than sending it to the landfill, the candy was repurposed as prizes for the Eco Fair games.
The Eco Fair welcomed a variety of audiences throughout the week, including other Euclid classes, parents, and invited friends. Students even hosted an after-school Eco Fair and open art studio session, where participation was “ticketed” with a donated reusable item. Items collected will support the Euclid art department, continuing the effort to give materials new life rather than send them to the landfill.
“The project empowered students to become changemakers in the school and in the community,” Ms. Phelps-Bradbury said. “They took ownership, made creative choices, and encouraged each other. I’m incredibly proud of what they accomplished.”
Through meaningful partnerships, thoughtful curriculum, and plenty of hands-on learning, Euclid Middle School is helping students grow into environmental stewards, one used t-shirt upcycled to a dog toy at a time.
