As part of a sustainability project, the Wattle Room children have collected their morning snack containers and repurposed them as part of a chocolate factory, inspired by Roald Dahl’s story Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Over the course of several weeks, the children drew innovative and creative plans for their collaborative piece, which is now complete.

The process of designing and creating the factory allowed the children to apply their critical thinking skills and voice creative solutions. The foundations of the factory were mapped out with tape and handwritten labels by the children to define the individual spaces. The main building features a ‘chocolate waterfall’, which the children decided should flow through a hole in the wall via a pipe system. The glass elevator, painted foliage, candy decorations, fencing and the blueberry squeezer machine were all made of a variety of different plastics. The children were very proud of their efforts to mindfully reuse their plastic, rather than discarding of it without the care and consideration it deserves.

The children are about to embark on a visit to Rickett’s Point beach in order to further their understanding of sustainability and how their actions of repurposing plastic will keep the ocean clean and its inhabitants healthy. Their connection to this important issue has emerged in their end-of-year celebration concert, as it features in the original story they have devised.

Through collaboration, the children’s unique perspectives culminated in a sense of oneness.

“The earth is what we all have in common.” – Wendell Berry