Students Collect Bottle Caps That Become Eco-Friendly Bench and Picnic Table

What do math, science, history, design thinking, environmental awareness, philanthropy, and fifth graders at The Lexington School have in common? Together they build stuff. More than stuff – a bench and picnic table.

The project started in the fall when fifth grader Claire Robbins wrote a persuasive essay about the Bottle Caps to Benches project where environmental friendly company, Green Tree Plastics in Indiana, turns recycled objects into furniture.

Claire’s blog kicked off a campaign that grew into something big at The Lexington School.

Over the course of this school year, in addition to their weekly school-wide recycling program, fifth graders used design-thinking methods to determine a plan for promoting, collecting and raising awareness of this philanthropy.

The initial goal was to collect two hundred pounds of bottle caps that could be recycled into a school bench for all to enjoy.

Let’s just say fifth graders know how to crowdsource! Two hundred pounds? Not even close. The students raised almost 2,000 pounds of bottle caps.

A bench became a bench AND a picnic table too, both the result of smart, determined The Lexington School students.

In April, it all came together. The bench and picnic table were delivered, and the entire fifth grade threw a party in celebration.

No blog post can tell the story as well as the kids do. Watch the video  to hear and see this amazing story for yourself in their own words.