Curated OER
Choose Your Own Adventure: Recycling
Learners complete a variety of activities designed to encourage them to explore recycling. They complete a quiz and worksheet, sort recyclable items and discuss how recyclable goods are identified.
Teach Engineering
Magnetic or Not?
The class must determine the magnetic properties of different materials, including aluminum and steel by sorting through materials using a magnet. Groups make a prediction on whether a material is magnetic and then perform tests to...
Curated OER
Recycling Vocabulary Maze
In this recycling vocabulary activity, students find their way through a maze by using clues about recycling and spelling out words. A reference web site is included for additional activities.
Teach Engineering
Magnetic Materials
The design challenge: develop a method to separate steel from aluminum. The first lesson plan in an eight-part series introduces the class to the grand challenge of ciming up with a method to streamline a sorting process at a recycling...
Curated OER
Information, Please!
Young scholars examine how aluminum is recycled. In this recycling lesson, students participate in a field trip to a local recycling center to observe the process of recycling aluminum. Young scholars take notes and report their findings.
Teach Engineering
Electricity and Magnetic Fields
Introduce your class to the idea of magnetic fields around electrical wires with an activity that provides the information about the direction of a magnetic field around a wire carrying an electric current.
Teach Engineering
Circuits and Magnetic Fields
Have your class use compasses to try to find the magnetic field around an electric current. Groups use the same technique to visualize magnetic fields as they did in the second activity in the series, but this time, the field is created...
Curated OER
Where Do Things Come From?
Second graders examine the recycling process. For this recycling lesson, 2nd graders discuss the reasons for recycling and create storyboards to show where a specific material comes from. Students complete a worksheet as a follow-up...
Curated OER
Recycling
Learners relate recycling to waste reduction. In this science lesson, students talk about the environment and how recycling certain natural resources actually saves on energy. They also discuss what type of recycling causes pollution...
Curated OER
Action, Please!
Students create an advertising campaign. In this environmental education lesson, students research aluminum and aluminum can recycling. Students wrap the lesson up by writing newspaper articles, creating public service announcements, and...
Curated OER
Classic Trash
Students investigate how trash is classified and the options to deal with it. In this trash and recycling lesson, students perform an activity to classify trash into organic, renewable/ recyclable, now renewable/recyclable and...
Curated OER
Waste Not Want Not
Students are introduced to the need to save natural resources. Through inquiry, hands-on activities, and problem solving, students increase their understanding of solid waste materials and the need to reduce, recycle, and reuse.
Curated OER
Recycling!
The students recall events from Dr. Seuss' story The Lorax and make connections to environmental issues affecting their lives. They are expected to reflect on the facts of the story and respond verbally stating the inferences they made...
Curated OER
We Recycle!
Students discuss and brainstorm the need for recycling. They also learn what materials they use are recyclable. They are to start their own recycling center in their school. They promote recycling by using posters and other graphics.
Concord Consortium
Metal Forces
Are you all bent out of shape, trying to find a great resource that illustrates the properties of metals? Show science scholars the unique world of metallic bonding with a hands-on activity. Users apply three levels of force to a sample...
Curated OER
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Students understand the process of recycling. They investigate how it improves the environment. They read the story "Don't Pollute" by Stan and Jan Berenstein. They analyze trash and sort it into bins.
Curated OER
Aluminum Altruism
Students explore the value of recycling. They consider the importance of giving back to their school community. They calculate their earnings using multiplication and addition.
Curated OER
Recycling Relay
Students improve their locomotor skills and their knowledge of recycling. They participate in a relay as they recycle different objects into their proper containers.
Curated OER
Texas Recycles Day: A Sample School-Wide Environmental Event
Students participate in a recycles day. They research how recycling benefits the environment. They also compete in a paper products recycling contest.
Curated OER
Recycling and Reusing
Students complete the associated worksheets as they investigate ways to recycle and reuse common objects. They share ideas on reusing objects while practicing listening, speaking and note-taking skills.
DiscoverE
Design a Folding Solar Panel
Solar energy is an amazing alternative ... but, not always particularly portable! Challenge young scientists to a folding solar panel build-off with an easy-to-execute activity. Scholars brainstorm around specific design needs, construct...
Teach Engineering
Trash to Treasure!
One person's trash is another man's treasure. Challenge your class to build something useful out of the trash they throw away on a regular basis. Groups design and build a practical item from trash they collect, allowing the class to...
SF Environment
Compost Tag
Composting is a great way to get children involved in recycling. First, they discuss how biodegradable products decompose to make compost. Then, they talk about what can and cannot be composted. They play a game similar to around the...
Curated OER
Solid Waste
Students determine the percentage increase in output of solid waste in the U.S. They determine the length of time it takes for throw away items to decompose.