Golden Apple: Happy Dancing Turtle Teaches Pine River-Backus Students Recycling Through Crafts

Seeing a child’s imagination at work can be a truly incredible experience. What’s even more incredible is getting to see them learn values like recycling at the same time. That’s exactly what Happy Dancing Turtle sought to achieve with their recent Recycled Halloween Craft Class at Pine River-Backus Schools.

“We brought in new materials and household materials that would normally get thrown away and just let the kids create … and it’s something they can take and do at home then, too,” explained Happy Dancing Turtle Program Coordinator Michelle Hoefs. “I mean, we were using toilet paper tubes and tin cans and paper and markers and glue. So it’s not something they have to come and do here, it’s something they can then take the ideas and go home and do as well.”

Happy Dancing Turtle offers programs like this craft class and their monthly Nature Club in an effort to educate students about the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling, while also fostering a sense of creativity among students.

“Happy Dancing Turtle’s mission is to grow good stewards of the planet, and we do that through events and programs and classes like this that inspire wonder and empower change,” said Hoefs. “So just then by showing them these little things, you know, that then gets them thinking about other things that they can do rather than just throwing things away.”

Happy Dancing Turtle will be holding their 17th annual Back to Basics event on Feb. 11, which will host a number of sustainable living workshops and a recyclables vendor fair. For more information, you can check out the Happy Dancing Turtle website.