stenciling

=HIDENWOOD ELEMENTARY’S STORM DRAIN STENCILING PROGRAM PUTS MESSAGE ON THE STREET ABOUT WATER QUALITY = media type="custom" key="4920685" You may have seen groups of students and teachers roaming the streets of Hidenwood Elementary with spray cans on the afternoon of October 23. No, they were not graffiti artists. These fourth graders were volunteers for Hidenwood’s storm drain stenciling project. Volunteers participating in this project marked street curbs near storm drains with messages stating “No Dumping” and “Save the Bay” in an effort to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay. The storm drain stenciling project is one of many activities aimed at preventing trash, pet waste, and household chemicals from entering into the Chesapeake Bay through the storm sewer system.  Rain washes down streets and parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks, roofs and yards, carrying water and everything it picks up into storm drains. Storm drains are the entry point into a storm sewer system and this system eventually discharges storm water directly to local streams without treatment! Hidenwood’s storm drain stenciling project is part of a larger movement to keep our watershed free of trash, dirt, and chemicals. Through storm drain stenciling, students at Hidenwood hope to increase awareness about the connection between the street and our yards, storm drains, and the storm sewer system.  Classroom teacher Lauren Jones and librarian Elizabeth Crispino developed this project in response to a district-wide initiative requiring that all Newport News students participate in a “Meaningful Watershed Experience” prior to high school graduation. This project was derived from the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Chesapeake 2000 Agreement, which was signed by the governors of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia and the mayor of Washington, D.C. The Agreement was an effort to restore the Bay through various means, including education and stewardship. Newport News Public Schools decided to tackle this significant issue with our eager 4th graders.

Hidenwood students plan to continue their campaign to save the Bay by educating their fellow students, helping to clean up their school, and even contacting local officials.