Have you ever thought about the air in your classroom? Here are a couple of easy ways for you and your students to keep the air in your classroom fresh and healthy.

Out the Window

Have you ever heard of VOCs? Volatile organic compounds are released as gases from a variety of chemicals and some are bad for health. VOCs are released by a wide array of products numbering in the thousands. Examples include paints and cleaning supplies, pesticides, building materials and furnishings, copiers and printers, glues and adhesives, and permanent markers. Levels of many VOCs are sometimes up to ten times higher indoors than outdoors. The logical solution to this problem is to open a window and let the outside air in and the inside air out. A few things to consider:

Make sure the window is not next to an exterior vent. Schools sometimes have ventilation systems that draw especially bad air out of the building. If you open a window by one, it could pull the dirty air right back in.

Don't open windows on heavily trafficked streets or near idling vehicles. Air polluted with exhaust is not good to breathe.

Likewise, if your window is next to a stinky factory or some other polluting business, just keep it shut. If there's a high pollen count or dust, you may also want to be careful.

Even if there's heating or air conditioning on, opening your window just a little bit for at least five minutes a day can significantly improve your indoor air quality. Designate a student to be a window watcher to make sure the window is only open for five minutes.

Opening windows is about as easy as it gets and it's free. You can't beat that. Even if you can't open your classroom's window because of heavily polluted air outside, spread the word to other people and try it in other areas of the school.

Plant Purification: A Growing Experience

Plants are natural air cleaners. In fact, NASA studied plants' ability to purify the air so they would know the best ones to keep the air clean and healthy on tightly sealed spaceships and future space stations. The best air cleaners they found, according to the University of Minnesota Extension Services, were:

Hedera helix (English ivy)

Chlorophytum comosum (spider plant)

Epipiremnum aureum (golden pothos)

Spathiphyllum “Mauna Loa” (peace lily)

Aglaonema modestum (Chinese evergreen)

Chamaedorea sefritzii (bamboo or reed palm)

Sansevieria trifasciata (snake plant)

Philodendron scandens “oxycardium” (heartleaf philodendron)

Philodendron selloum (selloum philodendron)

Philodendron domesticum (elephant ear philodendron)

Dracaena marginata (red-edged dracaena)

Dracaena fragrans “Massangeana”(cornstalk dracaena)

Dracaena deremensis “Janet Craig” (Janet Craig dracaena)

Dracaena deremensis “Warneckii” (Warneck dracaena)

Ficus benjamina (weeping fig)

Reuse and decorate a glass or plastic container at least 6 to 8 inches in diameter to use as a plant pot. Use organic potting soil if possible and don't use fertilizers or pesticides on your plants. Keep the soil surface clean and free of plant debris because microorganisms in the soil help clean the air, too, but they need access to it. Also, make sure to not overwater as it can cause mold growth, which is another form of air pollution.