Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

During November 2011 I spent two weeks in Prelip, Macedonia, working with students on basic recycling education. I went in with a plan for how the lessons would be carried out, and a set schedule but I was also expecting changes to be made to those plans. Any changes made never effected the true goal of the project: To educate students on basic recycling.
In my first week in Macedonia, I worked with students from Elementary school to High school. I visited several different schools, getting a idea of how the classes worked in the city, village and private schools. Depending on the grade levels and schools there were different lesson options to work with. The lesson would start with me introducing my self or with Kate (the teacher introducing the lesson), and talking about basic recycling in Macedonia. I would ask the students why they thought recycling was important and if they even knew what it really was.
There were four different activities. A game were the students would compete to answer questions about recycling and what can be recycled, coloring/ recycling maze and planters, bracelets, and Green Team reflection.
While playing the game, students were very involved. Not every student was strong when it came to speaking english, so one of the time consuming challenges was having a teacher translate things for me and for the class. In a elementary school class Kate and I were pleased to find a younger student who acted as a translator for the class. His teacher was even surprised at how well he could speak english. The boys name was Peter and when we asked him were he had learnt such great english his reply was â€œWatching TVâ€. Despite this minor set back, students had fun guessing the answers and competing against each-other.
In younger classes, instead of a game we had students color in pictures, searching for things that could be recycled in the picture and playing with a maze. At the end of that lesson we would then make planters. Kids would bring a jar from home, we would fill it with soil then plant a flower. Kids would have directions on how to take care of the plant once it made its way home. Hopefully they haven't drowned their flowers because from the way it started your would have thought we were trying to grow lilly pads.
Bracelets were used in any level class. I would hand out colored string and first show the kids the stitches. They would practice for a bit and when it looked like they had started the bracelets I would show them how they could use soda can tabs as beads in the bracelets. The class that seemed to enjoy that lesson the most was a group of first graders. Despite how difficult they might have found the stitches, they didn't give up and their bracelets turned out the best.
I found that the high school students were the easiest to work with. This was mainly because they had a better understanding of english and it took less time out of the lesson for a translation. In their classes I mostly talked to them about the Green Team I was a part of at my own school; how it is student interest based, as well as how we created and managed it.
In ever class we took photos of the lesson being taught to the students and the kids participating. After the lesson I learnt from the teacher that I was working with that several of her students wanted me and Kate to return to their class again. Sadly we did not have enough time to. My project only allowed me two weeks in Macedonia but those two weeks were full of student education. I feel that the kids where challenged enough to think about standard recycling without the topic being to advanced for them to comprehend. Macedonia is a developing country and do not have as many sustainable technologies or recycling options as the United States, but I know that if more students are given the opportunity to learn that those technologies and options do exist; they will want to environmentally progress.