This activity will help your students become more familiar with the types of products that can be recycled, as well as how to recycle them.
Supplies:
- One pair of non-latex gloves for each team of students (such as garden gloves)
- Trash bags in two different colors, one for regular litter and one for recyclable materials
Divide the students into teams of two, providing each student team with a pair of gloves. One student will wear the gloves and pick up the litter while the other holds the two bags. Next, have the students head outside to clean up around the school, ball fields, and playgrounds. Instruct them to put regular litter into one bag and recyclable litter in the other. Students may switch roles half-way through the activity.
After returning to the classroom, go through some of the items the students collected. As a class, decide if the students put the item in the right bag. Be sure to discuss how recyclables are handled in your area. For example, some neighborhoods have city trucks to pick up the items, while residents in other areas may have to take them to the recycling plant themselves. You might even want to set up a field trip to your local recycling center.