There is no better way to say “No to Coal” than to make and display a big, colorful banner.
What you need:
- 1 catchy slogan, the fewer words the better. (Ex. “Young People Say No To Coal,” “Fund Our Future Not Coal,” “Kids For Clean Energy,” “Step It Up, No New Coal”)
- 1 eye-catching image: ask the kids what they think the central image should be
- 1 double bed-sized sheet. Cheap, non-shiny ones are the best for painting
- 1 overhead projector (or you can just freehand your message)
- 1 transparency with your message design on it
- 1 large room with a large wall to hang sheet on
- 1 marker pen
- duct tape or gaffer tape
- some fabric paints (a department store, or a craft shop will have them)
- paint brushes
- newspaper to protect the table
- protective paper to hang on the wall
How to do it:
- Hang or tape the sheet on the wall, making sure it's secure and doesn't sag in the middle. Make sure there is some protective paper or card behind the sheet so that the wall doesn't get marked in step 3.
- Project (or freehand) your message onto the sheet; make sure the design takes up a good portion of the sheet.
- Draw around the outlines of your design in marker pen.
- Take the sheet down. You can leave the wall where it is, though.
- Find a large table and assign areas for the kids to start filling in - make sure it goes on thickly so it looks really professional.
- After the message is painted, let the class add their individual creative messages in the form of poems, pictures, paintings, whatever. This is their banner, let them make it their own.
- Leave to dry.
- Display the banner on April 13 in front of a place that represents climate change (like a tree, park or power plant) and email a picture of it to education@ran.org.
- Or send the banner by April 9th to:
Rainforest Action Network
School Banners
221 Pine St San Francisco, CA 94104
Have fun!