For Immediate Release

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

Media Contact: Jessica Sacco
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]

Raymond’s Lamprey River Elementary School Celebrates Earth Day

RAYMOND — To celebrate Earth Day, students at Lamprey River Elementary School took the time to appreciate the natural world through a number of activities, presentation and projects.

On Friday, April 19, students in kindergarten through fourth grade spent time indoors and out, where teachers tied each grade level’s curriculum into a fun, interactive day learning about Earth.

“We wanted to provide a wide range of activities and projects that students could work on to gain a better understanding of the importance of protecting and preserving our Earth,” Principal Laura Yacek said. “This also gave students the opportunity to see the advantages of our own natural surroundings, like the Lamprey River, and the nature trail. My hope is for students and staff to take pride in everything we have in our backyard.”

• Students in pre-kindergarten through fourth grade attended the Miller’s Wildlife animal presentation in the cafeteria, where they saw a ring-necked dove, bearded dragon, red-footed tortoise, chinchilla, blue-tongued skink and ball python. Students also had the opportunity to take a picture with the dove, tortoise, or bearded dragon.
• Students in first and second grade attended a beaver presentation by Art Wolinsky down by the river. There, they talked about the family lives of beavers, facts and myths, and how the animals are a keystone species that create the wetlands ecosystem and support all kinds of plant and animal life.
• Recycle Relay: students in kindergarten, third and fourth grades raced in a relay carrying recycled materials — including milk jugs, toilet paper and paper towel rolls, and plastic containers — from one side of the field to the other.
• Nature trail walk: teachers took their classes on a nature trail walk, where students participated in a scavenger hunt. Items they were on the lookout for included insects, different types of leaves and trees, and small animals.
• Homemade bird feeders: students in all grades made bird feeders out of pipe cleaners and cheerios, which some took home to hang outside, while others placed them on trees around the school.
• Unified Arts Team activity: art, music, physical education, library and health teachers came together and co-facilitated the same lesson, based on the book/movie, “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.” In the story, a boy builds a windmill to save his village from famine after reading how to do so from a book in the library. Each student constructed a wind vessel made from recycled materials, with the goal of creating something that could propel up and out of the wind tunnel.
• Fourth grade students designed rocks that will be placed in a school rock garden.
• All grades ate lunch outside at their designated lunch time.
• LRES clean up: throughout the week, teachers took their classes outside and walked around the school campus to clean up any litter.

Principal Yacek would like to thank grade level team leaders, PTO volunteer coordinator Karla Bauer and parents Petra Scarfo, Tiffini Richards and Lisa DuFour for their assistance with organizing and putting on the Earth Day festivities.

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