Students hear positive messages
Naujaat youth drop the pop to celebrate Earth Day
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
NAUJAAT
Students and staff at Tuugaalik High School in Naujaat took part in both Drop the Pop and Earth Day this past month, holding a school assembly on April 21 to discuss making healthy choices.
Vice-principal Julia MacPherson is tasked with starting the barbecue for Earth Day celebrations at Tuugaalik High School in Naujaat on April 21, 2017. - Photo courtesy of Tuugaalik High School |
The Drop the Pop campaign aims to help students make healthy choices, starting with their beverages. Principal Aubrey Bolt said the school ties the two campaigns together.
"Drop the Pop is all about making healthy choices, being more physically active and making better food choices, while, of course, making healthy choices for the Earth is certainly a big part of Earth Day," said Bolt.
The school marked Earth Day with a combination of in-class discussions and outdoor activities that stressed the importance of protecting the Earth, nature and wildlife, themes that are also part of science lessons and social studies.
He said on the day they actually celebrate Earth Day, activities are held outside so the students can go out to enjoy the outdoors and all that nature has to offer to them.
"Compared to most urban students, our students certainly have a much better understanding of what the land can provide and what you could possibly lose if you don't look after it," he said.
"When we have elders in, or the kids are out on the land, the elders talk about the importance of using them all if you're harvesting animals, and not wasting any because there's a limit to what nature can provide."
The Drop the Pop campaign has already had positive effects as well. Bolt said the students at Tuugaalik give the programs they take part in an honest effort.
"When I first came here eight years ago, the vast majority of kids were drinking pop in the school and, in fact, the school actually used to sell pop at the canteen," said Bolt.
Before, he said it was common to see kids having pop during their morning and afternoon breaks, as well as during after-school activities. After the school stopped selling pop and installed water coolers for kids to refill water bottles, that changed.
"It's rare to see a pop in the school now," said Bolt. "So there's been a big change here in a short period of time, from seeing pop around almost constantly to hardly ever seeing it in the school at all now."
Bolt said having pop practically disappear during school hours can drastically reduce how much of it students drink during the week.
"So you have to believe that's making a healthy difference with most of these kids," said Bolt.
