Island Park Elementary is preparing to showcase the school's "green" side tomorrow at a school assembly as part of a countywide effort to bolster environmental stewardship and conservation.

Island Park teachers Meaghan Williams and Kathy Jones helped organize a Nov. 30school assembly as part of the school's effort to receive recognition under King County's Green Schools program. The assembly program, titled "Our Planet, R Choices", will feature performances by some of Seattle's best-known theater actors. Educators hope the program will educate the students about the importance of waste reduction and recycling through an interactive play.

The Green Schools program vision is to certify all schools in King County outside of Seattle through a three-step process. The goal is to get schools to practice resource conservation and engage their students and staff in environmental stewardship.

Teachers and administrators at the school on Island Crest Way worked hard earlier to achieve Level 1-certification for waste reduction and recycling and are ready to tackle Level 2 focused on energy conservation. Part of the certification process requires activities such as hosting an educational assembly, creating a new student group called "Student Energy Patrol" and introducing a new program called "Environmental Leadership".

The new "Student Energy Patrol", primarily the brainchild of Williams and Jones, would encourage peer-to-peer education. These student volunteers will be monitoring energy use and educating students about turning off lights, shutting down computers, dressing in layers for the weather and much more. 

The school is also introducing a new in-class workshop to it's students in grades 3- 5 called "Environmental Leadership". The schoolchildren will learn how to become habitat stewards, and choose a conservation-based project to work on. The projects can vary from picking up litter to turning out lights and then present this to the larger community through writing, art skills, drama or skits in hopes that they can encourage people to start conserving their own behaviors and habits.  Students in grades K-2 will be building awareness about these issues so when they arrive in 3^rd grade they are ready to engage in the program themselves.

Lakeridge Elementary is also starting to work on Level 2 certification by monitoring the buildings energy use and finding ways to reduce energy consumption.