Multi-Media Educational Website Helps Kids Create Custom Green Plans, Earn Green Points, and Take Action to be GREEN

New York, NY (January 22, 2008) — According to a recent Scholastic News online poll, kids ranked the environment as one of their top issues in the upcoming presidential elections. Now, Scholastic launches ACT GREEN! at www.scholastic.com/actgreen, a fun, educational website designed to motivate and empower kids to take action in school, at home and in their community to preserve the environment. This multi-media website provides kids, parents and teachers with customized green plans, expert tips, inspiring green short films provided by Live Earth, and a “Greenroom” to share ideas with other kids.

Developed in consultation with an environmental scientist from the University of California at Berkeley, ACT GREEN! at www.scholastic.com/actgreen provides kids, parents and teachers with free actionable information that will help them preserve the environment. When kids enter the site, they are first directed to the Green Quiz, to test how environmentally conscious they are. Upon completing the quiz, kids receive a customized Green Plan and are automatically entered into the Greenerator™, where they can activate their Green Plan and turn it into reality. As kids check off the green actions they have accomplished, they earn green points that power up the Greenerator. They can also earn green points throughout the site by selecting action items from the “100 Ways to Act Green!” list, reading articles, sending e-cards and more. Kids will enjoy tracking their own green points, as well as the overall power of the Greenerator, generated by all ACT GREEN! members.

“Kids are concerned about climate change, and they are motivated to learn that the changes they make now could greatly impact the future of our planet,” stated Francie Alexander, Chief Academic Officer at Scholastic. “Engaging kids around the issue of climate change is a great opportunity for kids, parents and teachers to learn and act green together. By educating and engaging kids early on, they are more likely to grow up to be better informed citizens and more willing to get involved and make a difference.”

In addition to the Green Actions, kids can watch a selection of short films, commissioned by Live Earth (www.liveearth.org) as part of the July 7th concerts staged on every continent, featuring 150 of the world’s greatest artists to raise awareness for the climate crisis. The collection of Live Earth films demonstrate solutions while encouraging a dialogue around global warming. Kids can also download fun and useful ACT GREEN! tools including appliance tags, green door-hangers and stickers to help motivate their family and friends to get in on the “act.” Downloadable appliance tags include a microwave tag that says, “I am a Green Machine,” a thermostat tag that says, “Saving the world. One degree at a time,” and an “Unplug Me” tag kids can attach to electrical outlets throughout their house or school. Each tag includes a short explanation of how environmentally appropriate the appliance is, and how to make it more green.

Kids can also download green door-hangers and stickers that say, “This is a Green Home,” “Recycle Me,” and “Turn Me Off,” among others. Kids can spread the ACT GREEN! message by sending fun e-cards and Green Actions, and chatting with friends about their green activities in the Greenroom.

“Climate change presents a huge challenge to our global society because the solutions are beyond the scale of individual action,” stated Mark Spencer, an environmental scientist from the University of California at Berkeley. “The Scholastic ACT GREEN! website provides kids and their families with the opportunity to contribute to the solution in a way that shows the collective effect of their actions and the actions of kids across the country. One child’s actions are just a blip in the global carbon budget, but one thousand kids riding their bikes, one million families lowering their thermostat, are actions that register. The ACT GREEN! website creates the framework for a community of kids to inspire each other, build on their successes and make a meaningful contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

Teachers and parents can access ACT GREEN! to learn about ways to engage their kids in green activities in school and at home. The site offers an extensive list of more than 100 action items that can be easily implemented in a classroom or home environment, along with a selection of green-themed books. Teachers can also download a climate change classroom poster from Scholastic complete with interdisciplinary curriculum created by Facing the Future (www.facingthefuture.org). To help get their classroom involved, teachers can download an ACT GREEN! form to track the students’ green points and enter a sweepstakes to win a set of green-themed books for their classroom and a free online subscription to Scholastic Printables.

To learn more about ACT GREEN! visit www.scholastic.com/actgreen.

To learn more about SCHOLASTIC visit www.scholastic.com.

Contacts:
Scholastic
Sara Sinek
212-343-6899
ssinek@scholastic.com

Scholastic
Esther Chen
212-343-6657
echen@scholastic.com