How Your School Can Make a Difference on Real-World Issues
Our school's humble literacy project led to the government proposing a ban on plastic straws, says Rebecca Morris…
Back in October, Y5 embarked on a digital literacy project that, unbeknownst to us at the time, would provoke a reaction from over 100,000 members of the public and be discussed by MPs in the House of Commons.
The Change It project is a KS2 literacy unit designed by resource creators A Tale Unfolds and supported by petition website change.org. It combines persuasive writing with digital filmmaking to empower pupils to tackle a social issue of their choice. Aware of its extensive coverage in the media, my class went about their own research on the devastating and accumulative effects of plastic waste on the environment.
The pupils were particularly concerned about the damage that single-use straws cause to our oceans and, reflecting on their own use, knew something could be done to improve this problem.
The project gave pupils a clear purpose and audience for their writing. Once they’d planned, drafted and written up their findings, they created a campaign film to explain how plastic straws are ruining the environment.
We submitted our movie to LitFilmFest – an annual film festival for primary schools that gives winners the chance to see their creation at the IMAX in Waterloo. Here it is: It didn’t stop there. The children held assemblies to share their research, conducted door-to-door campaigns and wrote persuasive letters to local businesses.
Our first success came from a local pub – part of the McMullen brewery chain – which took our children’s points on board and agreed to use paper straws and only provide them on request.
They’ve now banned plastic straws across all their pubs. Two pupils followed this up (in their own time!) by interviewing and filming a waitress on the impact this had.
With wind in their sails, the children also wrote to other businesses, starting with local coffee shops, and even approached large corporations such as Capri Sun, which responded by saying it was investigating changes it could make.
The children could see the purpose of their writing and the direct impact that their efforts were having. This only spurred them on further.
We looked at the successes of other young activists on change.org, such as teenager Lucy Gavaghan’s successful campaign to end the sale of battery hen eggs in Tesco, and decided it was time to create an online petition to generate support from a global audience. #StrawsSuck was launched.
Over the following months, the campaign grew steadily, with the children doing whatever they could to promote it.
Their efforts paid off. They appeared as guests on BBC Three Counties Radio and were featured by the Metro newspaper and on environmental websites.
The school’s juice suppliers got in touch to discuss possible changes and we had a visit from our milk provider too, which said the company was planning to create different types of straws.
It also sent the pupils reusable beakers and started delivered milk in glass bottles instead.
By March our petition had reached over 100,000 signatures, with streams of messages from well-wishing signers from all over the world, all inspired by the future generation.
Even now, children stop me in the corridors at every opportunity to ask how much it has grown – we’re at 107,000 and counting! Our local MP, Iain Stewart, agreed to raise the campaign with Michael Gove in the House of Commons, who in turn commended the pupils, saying, “We have to ensure that we have a more sustainable approach towards the environment.’
In June the pupils joined with children worldwide to celebrate World Oceans Day and take part in the #ZeroPlasticLunch project. This involved ditching cling film, straws, plastic cutlery and chocolate bar wrappers and seeking out recyclable or reusable alternatives.
Now the wheels are in motion, the children have vowed not to stop until the government agrees to a ban, even writing a letter to Mr Gove to request a meeting where they can discuss their concerns.
The children couldn’t be prouder of what they’ve achieved or more eager to see real change. They have shown such passion and pride and I’m incredibly proud of their achievements.
Rebecca Morris is a Y5 teacher at Oxley Park Academy in Milton Keynes.
Support the #StrawsSuck campaign by adding your signature at change.org/strawssuck.
LitFilmFest is a free festival for UK schools which brings together traditional English with filmmaking. Find out more at litfilmfest.com and follow @ataleunfolds on Twitter.
