Tech-savvy Manor Students Aim to Save the Earth

To coincide with Earth Day, fourth and fifth graders at Seaford Manor Elementary School began work on digital public service announcements about the environment. The projects are being done through the LIFT program, which merges library, innovation, fitness and technology. 

Students are working in small groups to make their PSAs, which spotlight ways to help the Earth. Topics include air pollution, animal extinction, consumption habits, deforestation, littering, recycling, water pollution and wildfires. Each video must identify the problem and causes, as well as possible solutions. 

To begin, students worked with librarian Jennifer Rosenberg on their research skills. They learned how to find credible online resources to gather information about their specific topics. Once they had the facts, each group then created a script. For the final piece, students are recording their PSAs in front of a blue screen or green screen, which will allow them to add in relevant photo backgrounds. 

LIFT educators Leah Kukla and Daniel Maricondo have been supporting fourth and fifth graders for the recording component. They showed students how to record on iPads and piece together their clips using iMovie. 

This is the first year that students are creating PSAs in LIFT and the teachers hope to make it an annual project.