Paper, not plastic: Students decorate Earth Day bags for Monroeville, Pitcairn stores

After unpacking their groceries, certain shoppers in Gateway School District may want to save the bags as keepsakes.

Students at Dr. Cleveland Steward Jr. Elementary School spent an afternoon using their artistic abilities to decorate 500 brown paper bags with environmentally friendly images and messages. The bags will be delivered to the businesses that donated them, Giant Eagle in Monroeville and Wall Avenue Express in Pitcairn, for use by customers on April 22, which is Earth Day.

“We have students who go to both those stores, so I thought it would be perfect for our community and our families to use these paper bags instead of plastic,” first-grade teacher Kassandra Poliziani said.

She started the annual project seven years ago, her first as a teacher.

“I wanted the kids at such a young age to get involved, and I wanted them to be able to do something hands-on to protect the earth, instead of just learning about it,” she said.

This year, students in 15 classes participated, using markers and colored pencils to draw all sorts of pictures, from flowers and clean water to the earth, itself. Many of the bags encourage conscientious people to “pick up trash,” save our oceans” and in at least one case, drive a certain make of electric vehicle.

Poliziani has been teaching her students about subjects such as recycling, composting, pollution and saving energy. She often turns off the lights in her classroom when they’re not needed, and she hopes the children will remind folks at home to do the same.

As for the brown bags, they generally have been a hit among shoppers.

“Last time, the customers loved them so much that they went by in a day,” Poliziani said, much to the delight of the young artists:

“They’re proud of their work.”