Tiny tots from a North Shields nursery school are proving that you’re never too young to recycle by making a giant artwork out of plastic waste.
Children from Sir James Knott Nursery School have started work on a mural project made entirley from plastic bottles tops to brighten up the main corridor inside their school.
They're working with House of Objects, a creative recycling project based at Rising Sun Countryside Park, as well as North Tyneside Council’s recycling team to create the artwork.
The 8ft x 3ft piece will be made up of dozens of individual pictures depicting the sea, sky and beach, with a large school crest in the centre.
It coincides with the start of national Recycle Week 2018, in which schools, businesses, charities and councils across the UK work to raise awareness of plastic recycling.
Emma Pace, Managing Director of House of Objects, said: “The purpose of these sessions is to try and nurture waste awareness in children from a young age, but to do it in a way that’s really fun and creative for the little ones.
“It’s a lovely way to introduce small children to an important theme and getting them to see waste materials as a resource and not as rubbish. Their artworks are absolutely adorable and we can’t wait to see the finished piece.”
An appeal went out to parents, staff and friends of the nursery school to donate waste plastics from home, and the school was inundated with hundreds of plastic milk bottle caps and other materials.
Head teacher, John Croft, said: “We received a huge amount of donated materials for the children to use in their artworks and we would like to thank everyone who brought something in.
“We’ve taken down some old shelves in the corridor to make way for the mural and the children have made a great start on the project. It’s fantastic to see them so engaged and having fun.”
The nursery and House of Objects will continue their partnership with the opening of a new Invention Shed, a small workshop stocked with recycled materials, which will be used to teach the children how to make toys and learn problem solving skills at an early age.
