We live in a society that is focused on growth and development. As we continue to do this, we must encourage our children to protect the beauty of their communities. Northwest Middle School is located along side the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains in Greenville County. Our goal was to get our students to encourage beauty while protecting the many species of birds in our area and protecting their homes.

As a school we recognize that we are lucky to live in a beautiful part of Greenville County. We know that as populations grow so too does the amount of waste products. As part of the grant, we were able to enhance a basic recycling program from just paper to now including plastic, glass, and cardboard. Our students are recycling hundreds of pounds of waste each year that won’t end of up in landfills or on the side of the road. Our major goal of the grant was to provide beautiful bird houses around our campus. We now have installed 16 birdhouses for various types of birds in our area. We can bird watch and identify different species living in our houses. Students constructed and installed the birdhouses. They made signs for each birdhouse with information about native South Carolina birds.

The best part of this project was that it helped the entire school get involved. Some of our students built the houses while others painted and stained them while others worked on the signs for them. It truly became a school wide project. The houses were installed by parents and community members. In the spring we have been able to see many birds taking advantage of these new houses. Students get to enjoy seeing them fly around our campus and enjoy these houses. Parents and visitors are enjoying seeing the great work of the students and the beautiful birds.

These projects will be long lasting. The bird houses will continue to provide beauty to our campus while the recycling program will benefit our environment as we continue to support recycling efforts. Our students are learning more each day about protecting the environment for all people and creatures as part of their science classes and by watching the great things happening on our campus.