Flour Bluff Intermediate school students competed in the Trash to Treasure contest in categories of Dia de los Muertos and Creative. The goal of the project was to teach children about the impacts of marine debris. The winning sculptures will be displayed at a Dia de los Muertos Festival booth. The project was led by the Mission-Aransas Reserve and sponsored by the Texas General Land Office.
This October, local 5th and 6th grade students from Flour Bluff Intermediate School created impressive art sculptures made of individual pieces of marine trash. The sculptures were submitted to a Trash to Treasure contest. The sixty-one entries turned over 300 pounds of marine debris into educational art pieces. All of the works of art were very creative, colorful and inspiring. There were two categories for the art: Dia de los Muertos and Creative. The award-winning pieces to be displayed this fall at the Corpus Christi Dia de los Muertos Festival on October 29th.
The contest is a joint collaboration between Flour Bluff Intermediate School and the Mission-Aransas Reserve at The University of Texas Marine Science Institute to help students understand the impact of trash on beaches and local ocean wildlife.
Prior to the contest, scientists came into the classroom and discussed what marine trash is and how it can affect local wildlife. Students also received an up-close view of the problem by participating in beach clean-up events with the scientists this past spring. Through this creative process students learned about what type of trash is common to our Texas beaches. They were able to turn an ugly problem into real beauty with the creation of dynamic art pieces.
This project is funded by the Texas General Land Office, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to help future generations understand that they can make a difference in reducing trash on Texas beaches.
“For 30 years Adopt-A-Beach program has recruited volunteers to pick up trash along Texas’ 367 miles of coastline to pick up trash and the Treasures of the Texas Coast Art Contest teaches school kids across the state about the natural beauty of our precious coast,” said Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush. “Now we are proud to sponsor the Trash or Treat Art Contest led by our partners with The University of Texas Marine Science Institute. As a former educator, I am proud of this effort to encourage students to be creative in sculpting figures out of trash, while also learning about the value of keeping beaches clean.”
Winning sculptors, 5th and 6th grade students from Flour Bluff Intermediate, with Spanish Teacher Ms. Veronica Cristan.