Students at Nixon Elementary School in Roxbury Township recently learned about renewable energy sources, recycling and reusing household items during the school’s second annual Green Fair.  

Students rotated between seven different sessions run by parent volunteers, staff members, and a few outside organizations. These sessions included an obstacle course and carnival games made out of large recyclable materials like large food cans, cardboard boxes and old toys.

In addition to these games, students also were able to make junk bots and rag dolls in two different stations. These crafts were made with old household items that normally would have been thrown away or recycled. The Nixon PTA put out a call on its Facebook page for supplies to be donated.

The donated items came flowing in. A box was placed in each classroom to collect the materials and supplies to be used at the fair.

The three remaining sessions that the children traveled through included a special demonstration on bicycle safety with Marty’s Reliable Cycle. Megan Schmidt and Hunter O’Meara from the Hackettstown store covered the safety basics with the students including the ABC’s of a bicycle check, the proper way to ride a bike if cars are around, as well as different safety items each bike and rider should have to keep them safe, like reflectors, properly fit helmets and lights.   

Another station was with Trans Options. Representatives Kristen Tomasicchio and Melissa McCutcheon explained how Trans Options works with students and school districts through hands-on environmental education programs that cover engineering, energy and the environment.  

All of this wouldn’t have been possible without the PTA Green Team Planners and volunteers,    including Lenore Palen, Holly Guth, Christina Riesebeck, Patricia Rivera, Suzanne Mendonca, Lianne Addington, Heather Healy, Stacey Malone, Douglas Palen, Rodney Walker, Dave Lakata, Ximena Olsen, Kim Yamashita, Tiffany Lynch, Jenny Hiraman, Danielle Mohalek, Alexis Pisarczyk, and Eammon Maxwell.

In conjunction with the Green Fair, the PTA also ran a clothing and small toy drive, and electronics drive. The clothing drive was a fundraiser for the PTA.