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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Students will learn the importance of reducing waste in creating a sustainable future and present their knowledge in an illustrated poster.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Paper
  • Poster Board

Steps

  • Step 1

    Understanding how to reduce waste, reuse items, and recycle materials is crucial for creating a sustainable future. Have students research how these practices minimize the strain on natural resources, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce pollution. For example, when we reuse and recycle rather than produce new items, we use less energy to produce new items. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), recycling one ton of paper can save enough energy to power an American home for six months, save 7,000 gallons of water, save 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by one metric ton of carbon equivalent (MTCE).

  • Step 2

    Have students work in pairs or small groups. Ask each group to pick an area to research, perhaps paper, electronics, glass, etc., and then design and illustrate a poster that presents information about that topic.

  • Step 3

    When their work is complete, have the groups present their information to the class, then display the posters in a public hallway in the school. When the display comes down, ask students to think of ways to reuse the paper and poster board or to recycle the materials.

Standards

SCI: Convey designs through sketches, detailed drawings, or physical models to communicate ideas and solutions.

SS: Time, Continuity, and Change: Understand linkages between human decisions and consequences.

Adaptations

Have students investigate the concept of "upcycling." Also known as "creative reuse," it is the process of transforming by-products or unwanted items into new materials perceived to be of greater value. Challenge them to create something artistic out of items they would discard at home. Have them look up "Bicycle Wheel" by the artist Marcel Duchamp, which was one of the first known uses of upcycling (perhaps literally) to create art.

Ask students to investigate ways they could help their community reduce, reuse, and recycle. They could explore setting up a compost bin in the cafeteria. Or they might organize a letter-writing campaign to companies and lawmakers in which they advocate for conservation initiatives.