Reduce, Reuse, Recycle study at The Center
Most of us don’t spend much time thinking about trash and garbage. We might give the problem some thought when our community needs a new landfill, a crisis about dangerous waste arises, or litter gets out of control. But then we often forget about the ever-present challenge of dealing with trash and garbage. We think studying how to reduce, reuse, and recycle trash and garbage will engage children because they are familiar with and curious about the topic.
We need your help gathering items to investigate. We’ll need many different objects and pictures related to trash and garbage. We will begin our study by collecting them. Here’s a list of suggested items, but you may also send in others not on the list as long as they are clean and safe.
Objects – Wastebaskets, garbage–trash cans, recycling bins–boxes, trash–garbage bags, compost containers–bins, paper shredder, clean and dry trash–junk items*, can crushers
Pictures – litter–trash in various places, dumps and landfills, garbage trucks, street-cleaning vehicles, sanitation workers, recycling centers, incinerators, public trash receptacles
*Paper towel rolls, empty plastic containers, cans with dull edges, empty packaging, fabric scraps, leftover wrapping paper, rinsed tinfoil, old telephones or radios without batteries, wood scraps, empty spools, rinsed milk cartons, old magazines, and bottle tops
As we study trash and garbage and how we can reduce, reuse, and recycle, we will learn concepts and skills in literacy, math, science, social studies, the arts, and technology. We will also be developing thinking skills to observe, investigate, ask questions, solve problems, make predictions, and test our ideas.
What You Can Do at Home
Talk with your child about trash and garbage. Help raise your child’s awareness of the kinds of trash and garbage your family creates each day. If you dispose of your trash at a dump or landfill, take your child along to see where the trash goes. Borrow some library books about trash, garbage, and recycling. If you recycle at home, help your child take responsibility for sorting items into your family’s recycling boxes.
When you are outside with your child and you notice a piece of trash on the ground, point it out and talk about it. For example, say, “I wonder why someone dropped that candy wrapper on the ground. Is it supposed to be there? Is there a better place to put it?”
Thank you for playing an important role in our learning.
