Start education young...

Building better habits is easy when you start young, and very very difficult when you wait til adulthood.

1. From "Bag a bargain with German recycling," in the Daily Telegraph (UK):

The recycling ethic is inculcated from an early age in Germany. At kindergarten toddlers learn to sort waste into four categories. Later on it becomes a cross-curricular topic, particularly in English lessons. I've loss count of the number of classes I've given on global warming, the dangers of deforestation and energy-saving tips.

2. From "Making Cycling Irresistable":

Training and Education. Dutch, Danish, and German children receive extensive training in safe and effective cycling techniques as part of their regular school curriculum. Most children complete such a course by the fourth grade. It includes both classroom instruction and “on the road” lessons, first on a cycling training track just for children, and then on regular cycling facilities throughout the city. Real police officers test the children, who receive official certificates, pennants, and stickers for their bikes if they pass the test. Since many children get to school by bike, training in safe cycling is considered essential to ensure their safety (German Federal Ministry of Transport, 2002). But it also gets kids off to a lifetime of safe cycling skills. And since all schoolchildren are included, it means that girls as well as boys start cycling at an early age.

3. More than 10 years ago, I read something about how in Japan, children are responsible for cleaning their schools, they don't have a separate custodian. This teaches very early responsibility and what litter means to you and others.

This was the source of this idea, which I have written about for awhile, where students should be responsible for school cleanup, but to also have a fall and spring outside cleanup of the area within a one block radius of the school, in association with the neighborhood outside of the school.

For example, this weekend is the Shaw Neighborhood Cleanup. From the Post:

Residents and friends of the Shaw neighborhood will come together Saturday to help make the community cleaner and greener. Shaw Main Streets will sponsor its fourth annual neighborhood wide cleanup and Greenup starting at 9 a.m. at Shaw Middle School, 925 Rhode Island Ave. NW.

Residents are invited to help plant cherry trees and flowers, pick up trash, and remove and paint over graffiti. Neighborhood civic associations will focus on their blocks, with supplies provided by event sponsors. Neighborhood restaurants will provide lunch at 1 p.m. at the school.

For more information, go to http://www.shawmainstreets.com or call 202-265-7429.