27 December 2024
Two of our regional schools have taken our honours in respective categories of the rECOnstructed Art Competition and Exhibition.
Eastern Goldfields Education Support Centre and Norseman District High School recently showcased their creativity and commitment to sustainability and clearly impressed the judges.
Students across the Goldfields took part in the rECOnstructed Art Competition and Exhibition.
Eastern Goldfield’s Precious Plastics project earned first place in the competition’s high school category.
While Norseman District High School’s Year 3 & 4 class also made waves with Robot City, which won in the primary category and was inspired by a year's worth of saved bottle caps brought in by teacher Zoe Zeeman.
The students created unique robots using assorted plastic bottle caps, coffee jar lids, and other recycled materials, such as wool and feathers.
Zoe said that the project encouraged students to think about the materials they often discard.
“It helped the students to realise that putting away a few things a day can add up quickly over the space of a year.,” she said.
The students also expressed their pride in their creations.
“My favourite part of making Robot City was designing my robot on paper before putting it all together. I also liked that we got to reuse plastic.,” said Zander.
Jakob encouraged others to think about the possibilities of reusing materials.
“Instead of throwing away bottle lids, save them for art. You can make anything; the possibilities are endless,” he said.
The Eastern Goldfield’s project was led by staff member Rachel Griffiths and focused on transforming everyday plastic waste into functional art pieces. It aimed to raise awareness about plastic pollution while providing students with valuable, hands-on learning experiences.
“I was asked at the end of 2023 if I would be interested in doing some training on the machines that we got for the Precious Plastics program,” Rachel said.
“In 2024, I found out that no one was using the machines, so I put my hand up to give it a go and see what it was about. From there, I was given the task to run the program.”
The students used various plastic materials, such as bottle caps, containers, and packaging, to create sustainable products like planters and bowls.
Students reused items such as bottle caps, containers, and packaging, to create new things.
“The students have learnt about recycling and what is someone else’s waste can be used to create something we can use. They have also learned how to problem-solve and use industrial equipment,” Rachel said.
Megan O’Brien, a teacher at Eastern Goldfields, emphasised the benefits of this hands-on initiative.
“The Precious Plastics project has provided our students with a unique opportunity to step outside the traditional classroom setting and apply their real-life skills in a meaningful way,” she said.
The rECOnstructed Art Competition a nd Exhibition is an annual event organised by Kalgoorlie-Boulder Urban Landcare Group. You can find out more about the other work the group does on their website.