PSEG Long Island
Kudos to our schoolchildren. They are resilient and they’re committed to the causes they care about – like the environment and our planet’s future.
In March, PSEG Long Island launched an educational pilot program entitled: “I Am EM-Powered” in dozens of schools across our service area. Third through sixth grade teachers in 35 schools were excited to begin teaching the lessons we provided on environmental awareness and energy conversation. Students were equally excited, especially about the grand finale: Creating videos and vying for prizes and bragging rights in a coordinating public service announcement (PSA) contest.
The program and contest were to be part of a month-long celebration in April to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Also included were flower seed, tree and reusable bag giveaways and cleanup and beautification projects in towns and villages across Long Island and the Rockaways.
COVID-19 canceled these other activities – but not this program.
When the pandemic closed schools, a few educators were so energized about the program that we quickly adjusted the lessons to accommodate a new virtual learning format. Rather than working in groups in their classrooms, the quarantined students were resourceful – summoning their brothers, sisters, moms and dads to participate. Some said the project helped make life under quarantine a positive family bonding experience.
The students became producers, actors and news anchors, cinematographers, videographers and video editors, and all told, there were 142 videos submitted by students from five schools.
Thank you to teachers: Carol W. of Hempstead SD, Mark G. and Nick N. of Hicksville SD, Diana H., Suzanne G. and Frank S. of Oyster Bay-East Norwich SD, Elaine M. of South Huntington SD, and Karla M. of Uniondale SD.
Despite the unusual circumstances the coronavirus pandemic created, these teachers continued to engage their students to be advocates for protecting and saving the earth. Conserving natural resources, reducing dependency on fossil fuels and seeking renewable energy sources are essential teachings, especially for this generation. We appreciate the collaboration and commitment to spreading the word about environmental stewardship and are excited to share a few of the students’ videos with you below:
Emma, James H. Vernon School, Oyster Bay
Madeleine, James H. Vernon School, Oyster Bay
Adiyat, Hicksville Middle School, Hicksville
Check out the rest of the videos here.
To bring this course or any of our other educational programs to your school, after-school or camp program, please contact communityli@pseg.com or visit https://www.psegliny.com/inthecommunity/communitypartnership/educationalprograms.
Through our Community Partnership Program, we offer educational programs for children of all ages related to energy conservation, electric safety and preparing for emergencies. While our in-person programs are currently paused, we are adjusting some of them to accommodate a virtual learning format and are hopeful the PSA contest will be relaunched – either in classroom or virtually – in the spring.
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