How Can I Minimize My Waste in School?

Teacher: Amanda Hernandez

Area: Social Studies

Topic: Sustainability - Conservation

Grade: 5th
Materials:

Computers
Paper for letter writing
Cardboard and recycled materials
Markers
Large white sheets of paper
 

Standards:

UW-Madison Teacher Standards:

STANDARD 8: EMPLOYS VARIED ASSESSMENT PROCESSES


Teachers understand and thoughtfully use formal and informal evaluation strategies to assess students’ achievements, strengths, challenges and learning styles for continuous development.
STANDARD 13: IS A REFLECTIVE PRACTITIONER


Teachers are reflective practitioners who evaluate the effects of their assumptions, choices and actions on others (students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community) and who actively seek out opportunities to grow professionally. They examine assumptions enmeshed in ways of thinking and in familial, institutional, and cultural lore and practices.
 

MMSD Standards:

History – Use reference and information research skills to gather and organize information.
 

Wisconsin DPI Social Studies Standards:

Economics: Production, Distribution, Exchange, Consumption

Students in Wisconsin will learn about production, distribution, exchange, and consumption so that they can make informed economic decisions.
 

 

Objectives:

SWBAT write a persuasive letter that includes ways that they could reduce carbon footprints in school.

SWBAT create posters out of recycled material informing students around the school how they can reduce their carbon footprints. 

SWBAT create a waste free lunch.

 

Lesson Opening:

            Ask students what they think as a class they could do to reduce their carbon footprint and conserve in their school.  Have students brainstorm in groups of two, what they could do just in the school to reduce their carbon footprints.  Have one student write and the other present to the class.  Answers should include: add more recycling bins, unplug electrical items if they’re not in use, don’t waste paper, turn off lights when you don’t need them, etc. 

           

Procedure:

After students come up with their class list, tell students that today we are going to try and reduce our carbon footprint in the classroom using their ideas.  Tell students that not only are we going to do this, but we are going to see if other classrooms will do it with us.
Have students write persuasive letters to all other classrooms in the building with their partners.  Students can use the computer or hand write the letters as well.  Tell students that they need all the components of a letter, and they need to try and persuade their reader. 
Have students create posters out of recycled materials advertising ways that other students in school can conserve energy and reduce their carbon footprint. 
Have students investigate the recycling system in their school.  If there seems to be a shortage of recycling bins, have them write a letter to the school to propose getting more recycling bins.  Have them come up with other ways that could benefit the school and environment and challenge them to talk or write to people that might be able to help them. 
Tell students that most of the waste acquired in a day at school comes from the lunch room.  Many students do not eat all of their lunch and food items come in excess packaging.  Challenge students to come up with ways to have a waste free lunch.  Give students (in groups of four) a large piece of paper to write down ideas of how to have a waste free lunch.  Students should be able to come up with: eat all food, don’t bring bags, use Tupperware, no bottled drinks, etc.
Using the ideas that they came up with as a guideline, have students try to go through with their list the next day for lunch and come to school with minimal waste lunches.  Challenge students to use what they learned in the previous lesson to guide their lunch choices.  See if they are able to create a lunch that minimizes waste and is more local. 
 

Lesson Closing:

            The next say at lunch, as a class see how many students were able to have a waste free lunch and find other options for students that have leftover waste.  Come up with ways to reuse the materials that are left over, or talk about composts for those that have leftover food.  As a ticket out the door activity, have students write a paragraph about their lunch and how they tried to minimize their waste.

 

Assessment:

            Students will be formally assessed through their letter writing.  All components of a letter should be present as well as the body should be persuasive.  Students will be formally assessed through their poster ideas and their waste free lunches.  Students will also be assessed Another assessment is the discussions that the students come up with and share with the rest of the classroom. 

 

Considerations:

            Although this assignment is ideal, it might not work in certain schools.  There are some families that do not have the means to provide a lunch that the student takes to school and may rely on free and reduced lunch programs.  If this is the case, have the student write about the school lunch program and what could be improved to make hot lunch more waste minimal. 

 

Resources:

 

Department of Ecology State of Washington.  Earth Day 2009 – Go Green/Save Green.  Retrieved May 1, 2009 from http://www.ecy.wa.gov/earthday/2009tips.htm