Pupils drive home the water saving message

By Ed Merrison
WATER saving knowledge flows through the Yarra Valley after three schools celebrated their conservation efforts last week.
Pupils at Wesburn Primary School, Don Valley Primary School and Worawa Aboriginal College have been accredited in the State Government’s Water – Learn it! Live it! program.
Eleven schools in the Shire of Yarra Ranges have now signed up for the initiative, which is designed to teach future generations the importance of saving water.
Yarra Valley Water managing director Tony Kelly said the schools were shining examples of how water conservation concepts could be introduced into the curriculum.
“The Water – Learn it! Live it! program is about creating fun and interactive ways to shape knowledge, attitudes and behaviours on sustainable water conservation so it becomes a lifelong habit,” he said.
“I’m pleased schools in the Shire of Yarra Ranges are taking such an active role in creating a future generation of water savers.”
Yarra Valley Water education officer Nick Abroms awarded a certificate to Don Valley Primary School on Tuesday, 12 December, to show pupils had achieved the program’s key components.
“This is such a big topic at the moment with the way the drought is going,” he said.
“To teach these skills when the kids are young and also for them to take the message home to their family is just fantastic.”
Don Valley Grade 5 and 6 teacher Viv Pottage was impressed with the way pupils had responded since embarking on the initiative in June.
“The kids have taken so much ownership of the project and are able to pass on a variety of water saving messages,” she said.
“It’s something they can do themselves and not just something that happens in the adult world.”