Activity: National Recycling Week: What a waste – Year 5

Quick summary: In the first part of this activity students will be looking at aluminium: where it comes from; what it is used for; and how it is recycled. Students then conduct a survey of other students at their school on how they treat waste and recycling and conclude by creating a video to inform other students and their school on how to reduce waste and and increase recycling at school.

This lesson has been developed as part of the Schools Recycle Right Challenge for Planet Ark’s National Recycling Week. Register your lesson or other activities so they can be counted towards the national achievement and to receive other free support materials.

Learning goals:

• Students understand the link between natural resources with the need to both recycle and reduce waste.
• Students recognise some of the properties of recyclable waste materials and some aspects of the recycling process.
• Student’s question what an appropriate use of resources is and what might be wasteful in the context of becoming sustainable.

Australian Curriculum content descriptions:

Year 5 Geography

• The environmental and human influences on the location and characteristics of a place and the management of spaces within them (ACHASSK113)
• Locate and collect relevant information and data from primary and secondary sources (ACHASSI095)
• Present ideas, findings, viewpoints and conclusions in a range of texts and modes that incorporate source materials, digital and non-digital representations and discipline-specific terms and conventions (ACHASSI105)
• Reflect on learning to propose personal and/or collective action in response to an issue or challenge, and predict the probable effects (ACHASSI104)

Year 5 Science: 

• Solids, liquids and gases have different observable properties and behave in different ways (ACSSU077)
• Scientific knowledge is used to inform personal and community decisions (ACSHE217)
• Communicate ideas, explanations and processes in a variety of ways, including multi-modal texts (ACSIS093)

Syllabus Outcomes: GE3-2, GE3-3, GE3-4, ST3-6PW, ST3-4WS, ST2-7PW, 

Topic: National Recycling Week

Time required: 2 x 60 mins: 60 mins for main activity and survey preparation; break time for conducting student survey; 30 mins for analysing survey data and creating video.

Level of teacher scaffolding: Medium – the teacher will need to explain and make sure the student survey is conducted confidentially. Organise students so their survey can be done efficiently. 

Resources required: Map of school, clean aluminium cans and foil, art materials and paper for posters.

Digital technology opportunities: Video making, digital sharing capabilities.

There’s an app for that: Wagga Wagga – This app helps you understand waste management and how you can help in reducing waste entering landfill.

Homework and extensions opportunities: None.

Keywords: Rubbish, reuse, recycle, waste, aluminium, MRF (material recovery facility), material, survey.

Cool Australia’s curriculum team continually reviews and refines our resources to be in line with changes to the Australian Curriculum.  

These Planet Ark resources were developed by Cool Australia with funding from the Alcoa Foundation.