Local students to celebrate earth week

Dynamic Earth is preparing to help elementary and secondary school students across the city take part in the annual global event known as Earth Week, which runs from April 19 to April 23.

As part of the celebration, local students will head to Dynamic Earth, which is also home to the Big Nickel. There, they'll learn about how to protect the environment through hands-on programming in the areas of biodiversity and air pollution. They'll also be given a chance to do their part to help their natural surroundings as every participating students will be given a tree sapling to plant.

Additionally, on April 21 and April 22, students are scheduled to take part in a demonstration of air quality monitoring by Clean Air Sudbury, and will subsequently plant tree saplings around the Dynamic Earth science centre.

Meanwhile, Grade 5 and Grade 6 students will be creating a terrarium. In order to create this garden under glass, they'll be using a two-litre bottle and various species of plants.

To improve the overall quality of the soil, they'll be spreading lime. Plus, they'll be doing their own re-greening initiative as they'll be planting trees by the Big Nickel. The students will also  be learning how the city's environment has been improved and maintained, and they'll learn how these improvements ensure biodiversity in the local ecosystem.

At the same time, Grade 9 to Grade 12 students will be exploring how certain substances pollute the air, and about how they can control the air pollution locally. As part of an experiment, they'll play the part of a scientist and will set up their own sampling grid. Using microscopes, they'll analyze local sulfur-polluted soil samples from the 1970s as a reminder of how important it is to take care of our natural surroundings.

Earth Week was first originated in 1970 by former U.S senator Gaylord Nelson as a way to inspire awareness and appreciation for our environment.