On Friday, March 1st, the Year 7 and 8s entered Youth Explosion, a competition for all high schools within TCI, held by the Turks and Caicos Islands Tourist Board. There were three competitions: Spoken Word Poetry, Dance, and Plastic Bag Ban Mascot. The competition was fierce!   Hayden Williams wrote a fabulous poem, with its focus on “Tourism is key… it starts with me", and performed it to an instrumental rap that he chose. He wrote the poem over midterm break, with a little assistance from Ms Laura to help with the tweaking of rhythm and overall style. We are pleased to announce that Hayden’s selection came in second overall! Congratulations to Hayden!!! We were very impressed to see him confidently present in front of hundreds. Well done, Hayden! Our second entry, thanks to Mr Williams and student assistance during their blocks of art time, was Baggit, the Plastic Bag Ban Mascot. Students worked hard at completing the project on time, adding details according to the competition rules. The entire group helped Martin with the presentation; his height and confidence inside “Baggit” only needed the support from his peers to come across first rate. We had a great deal of positive feedback from the other participating schools, even though we did not place.

BAGGIT

Baggit was made partly out of recycled materials, including the container box used for his body and the old jacket for his arms. Our students acknowledge that “garbage” should be reused creatively, so we don’t throw anything away that has value. The “shag” was created from garbage bags cut into strips, reminding us to pick up and dispose of garbage around the island, to ensure we remain, “Beautiful by Nature”. The students chose the colours to be sure that all islands within the archipelago were represented, and that we acknowledged everything which may draw tourists here. White represented the salt once raked on Salt Cay, the windmills and waterways still visible on three of the islands, while the tan reminds us of the straw baskets once used as part of daily life. How great they were made by recycling nature! The red - for the crown of the Turks Head Cactus, represents Grand Turk, with the natural fezzes dotted throughout the landscape. Orange, found in the brilliance of the spiny lobster, acknowledges the importance of fishing off Big South. Turquoise, or the blues, remind us of just how important the pristine waters that surround our islands are, teeming with life and drawing in thousands of tourists annually, providing our nation’s livelihood. A myriad of pinks are spotted throughout nature, whether it flies past us as a flamingo, or seen as flecks within the sand and within the graceful curve of the conch. Of course, the yellow is for the sun that shines down upon us all year long. Baggit has a smile upon his face, an upturned arrow. Our country’s tourism is on the rise, enabling our people to enjoy a comfortable life, one we can be proud of. We must work towards staying on top, being the best! And this means Recycle, Reuse, Renew…