Using Art to Fight Pollution: Students Tackle Environmental Issues with Teacher Yulya

During the first term, my classroom was filled with lots of fun, creativity and of course…a lot of challenges! My main goal this semester was to teach our students new and interesting topics where they could easily remember their English vocabulary. We danced, sang songs, drew pictures, played games; in other words, we love to be creative!

While this semester has been full of memorable moments, I have to say I am especially proud of my Grade 5 students for going above and beyond by taking a project focused on pollution and integrating into their everyday lives.

As an avid fan of art projects, I knew that would be a great way to teach our Grade 5 students about the growing concerns pollution in our local communities, and of course all over the world. Every student in the class came up with ideas on how they could help current problems or prevent future ones, and created a collage using recycled materials to represent their ideas and display their solutions on how to help with these threatening issues.

(Students working on their ideas on how to solve pollution issues at school!)

After the art activity, each student presented in front of their classmates and teachers, explaining what needs to be done to help our planet to get rid of all of the garbage, how to reduce consumption of plastic and other harmful materials that cause pollution, and how it is important to recycle and take care of our planet. Through these projects, they learned that they don’t need to use straws for their drinks, and they discovered that they could buy goods from the market and store it in reusable containers instead of plastic bags!

(Trees and helping hands are included in their art as students display ways to better their environment!)

Together we learned many disappointing facts about pollution in Phuket. However, the positive result of this project is that now, our Grade 5 students take responsibility for their actions and teach their fellow students who are not aware of the dangers of polluting the community. Ever since we completed these projects, my students always remind me to recycle, avoid single-use plastics, and to save electricity by switching off the lights and unplugging fans and speakers after the class!

I’ve worked with Phuket Has Been Good To Us for over 4 years now, and it’s amazing to see my students excel through each grade level and develop passions for the issues that they learn about. With the sponsorship from Phuket Condos and Homes Co., Ltd and Properties in Phuket, I am very thankful to be able to continue teaching my students every year, and to encourage them as they learn not just English in my classroom, but also how to use it to support their ideas and passions with a voice.

I believe our students learned a lot from this topic, and will use issues like pollution to incorporate their knowledge from English class into their daily life. Together, we hope to one day to create a world where the environment doesn’t need protection.