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Our Environmental Footprint - Producing Garbage

Elementary

Description

“Producing Garbage” is one of a series of lessons that uses active learning to teach young children concepts associated with understanding their ecological footprint.  Students explore the environmental impacts of garbage from the perspective of reducing waste through smart consumer choices, recycling and re-using household items.  As they critically examine their own waste production learners will participate in an educational experience where they:

  • Investigate which types of waste can be diverted from the landfill.
  • Describe and sort items according to the 3 R’s.
  • Consider how everyday items can be re-used at home.
  • Describe personal goals for reducing their garbage “footprint”.

General Assessment

What skills does this resource explicitly teach?

  • Classification and sorting of materials
  • Brainstorming
  • Analyzing ecological footprint

Strengths

  • Hands-on approach that includes physical activity
  • Provides an easily accessible opportunity for personal growth towards environmental stewardship

Weaknesses

  • Lacks any assessment strategies
  • Does not include enough background information about the types of materials that can and cannot be recycled.

Recommendation of how and where to use it

This resource supports Science and Social Studies outcomes related to exploring human impacts on the environment, pollution, stewardship and global issues. The lesson could become the basis of a multi-faceted project that involves the class involved in creating positive change in school.  A waste audit would provide information about where performance could improve.  A detailed list of action items could include:

  • Eliminating single-use plastics from the cafeteria
  • Converting printers to print on both sides of the paper
  • Posting lists about what to place in recycling containers
  • Organizing bottle drives to raise funds for sports teams
  • Organizing at least one litter-free lunch a week

As the school achieves their waste reduction goals the class could prepare and post public awareness articles in local community newsletters and encourage local citizens to also reduce the amount of waste they produce.

Relevant Curriculum Units

The following tool will allow you to explore the relevant curriculum matches for this resource. To start, select a province listed below.

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  • Alberta
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        • Systems: Evaluating processes and structures of organizations builds understanding of decision making in the world.
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        • Systems: Evaluating processes and structures of organizations builds understanding of decision making in the world.
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        • Local Communities:: We shape the local environment, and the local environment shapes who we are and how we live.
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        • Science 2: Materials can be changed through physical and chemical processes
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        • Air and Water in the Environment
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        • Connecting and Belonging: My Environment
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        • My Community: Resources & Wealth
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        • Local Communities: Healthy communities recognize and respect the diversity of individuals and care for the local environmen
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        • Science 2: Materials can be changed through physical and chemical processes

Themes Addressed

Citizenship (2)

  • Ecological Footprint
  • Sustainable Consumption

Waste Management (1)

  • Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Sustainability Education Principles

Principle Rating Explanation
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives Good

The activities support the development of new learning where students are able to link how garbage can pollute air, water and the land and understand the relationship between human decisions and a healthy environment.

Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
  • Satisfactory: absence of bias towards any one point of view
  • Good: students consider different points of view regarding issues, problems discussed
  • Very good: based on the consideration of different views, students form opinions and  take an informed position
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions Good

Students will gain an understanding that consumer demand can influence product development and supply.  The recent elimination of plastic bags in many communities is used as an example of how personal choice can support the environment.

Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions:

Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.

  • Satisfactory: resource supports the examination of  these dimensions
  • Good:  resource explicitly examines the interplay of these dimensions
  • Very Good:  a systems-thinking approach is encouraged to examine these three dimensions
Respects Complexity Good

Many Canadians understand the importance of recycling but this lesson emphasizes that the best environmental choice is to reduce our consumption of single use items and products with excess packaging.

Respects Complexity:

The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected.

Acting on Learning Good

The culminating activity "Count Yourself In" has students identify 5 personal goals to reduce the amount of garbage they produce.  The achievement of these objectives is tracked in class.

Acting on Learning:

Learning moves from understanding  issues  to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community,  or for the planet

  • Satisfactory: action opportunities are included as extensions 
  • Good: action opportunities are core components of the resource
  • Very Good: action opportunities for students are well supported and intended to result in observable, positive change
Values Education Satisfactory
Values Education:

Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values.

Empathy & Respect for Humans Poor/Not considered
Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.).
Personal Affinity with Earth Good

One of the extension ideas suggests a garbage walk where students collect litter around their community.  This exercise will encourage concern about nature as learners observe visible evidence of pollution.

Personal Affinity with Earth:

Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.  

  • Satisfactory: connection is made to the natural world
  • Good: fosters appreciation/concern for the natural world
  • Very Good: fosters stewardship though practical and respectful experiences out-of-doors 
Locally-Focused Learning Satisfactory

The lesson challenges students to think about their own impact on the natural world.

Locally-Focused Learning:

Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community. 

  • Satisfactory: learning is made relevant to the lives of the learners
  • Good: learning is made relevant and has a local focus
  • Very Good: learning is made relevant, local and takes place ‘outside’ , in the community 
Past, Present & Future Satisfactory

Student driven strategies for reducing their environmental impact support looking towards the future and the likelihood of long-lasting changes in the way they think about sustainability.

Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future.

Pedagogical Approaches

Principle Rating Explanation
Open-Ended Instruction Good

Exploration with hands-on activities supports evidence based learning to foster dialogue about an important conservation issue.

Open-Ended Instruction :

Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer.

Integrated Learning Satisfactory

Although developed as a Science lesson, the relay race could be incorporated into a Physical Education class.

Integrated Learning:

Learning brings together content and skills  from more than one  subject area

  • Satisfactory: content from a number of different  subject areas is readily identifiable
  • Good:  resource is appropriate for use in more than one subject area
  • Very Good:  the lines between subjects are blurred 
Inquiry Learning Satisfactory

The hands-on aspect of the lesson actively involves students in new learning to support independent decision making.

Inquiry Learning:

Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.   

  • Satisfactory: Students are provided with questions/problems to solve and some direction on how to arrive at solutions.
  • Good: students, assisted by the teacher clarify the question(s) to ask and the process to follow to arrive at solutions.  Sometimes referred to as Guided Inquiry
  • Very Good:  students generate the questions and assume much of the responsibility for how to solve them.  . Sometimes referred to as self-directed learning.

 

Differentiated Instruction Satisfactory

The physical activity component of this lesson will appeal to kinesthetic learners.

Differentiated Instruction:

Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.

  • Satisfactory:  includes a variety of instructional approaches
  • Good: addresses  the needs of visual, auditory &  kinesthetic learners
  • Very Good: also includes strategies for learners with difficulties
Experiential Learning Satisfactory

The experiential nature of the hands-on activities could be further developed by involving learners involved in a complete waste audit of the school to define areas of improvement.

Experiential Learning:

Authentic learning experiences are provided

  • Satisfactory: learning takes place through ‘hands-on’ experience or simulation
  • Good: learning involves direct experience in a ‘real world context’
  • Very good: learning involves ‘real world experiences’ taking place’ beyond the school walls.
Cooperative Learning Poor/Not considered
Cooperative Learning:

Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.

  • Satisfactory:  students work in groups
  • Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught and practiced
  • Very Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught, practiced and assessed
Assessment & Evaluation Poor/Not considered
Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc.
Peer Teaching Poor/Not considered
Peer Teaching:

Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.

  • Satisfactory: incidental teaching that arises from cooperative learning, presentations, etc.
  • Good or Very Good: an opportunity is intentionally created to empower students to teach other students/community members. The audience is somehow reliant on the students' teaching (students are not simply ‘presenting')
Case Studies Satisfactory

Individuals actively reflect on how they deal with garbage in their own lives and will likely develop a new awareness of how they could reduce what they throw away with conscious choices.

Case Studies:

Relevant case studies are included.  Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore  concepts in an authentic context.

Locus of Control Good

Students have a great deal of choice in the decision-making process where they identify strategies for lowering their environmental footprint.

Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue.

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