Lesson 1: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Learning Resource Type

Lesson Plan

Subject Area

English Language Arts
Science

Grade(s)

K

Overview

This lesson may be taught as part of the Unit Plan - Solutions to Lessen Human Impact on the Environment.  In this lesson, students will explore solutions that would lessen the human impact on the environment. After reading, The Lorax by Dr. Suess, students will discuss ways they can help their environment through the 3R's (reduce, reuse, recycle). Students will create a reduce, reuse, recycle chart from their discussion.  

This unit was created as part of the ALEX Interdisciplinary Resource Development.

Science (2015) Grade(s): KG

SC15.K.6

Identify and plan possible solutions (e.g., reducing, reusing, recycling) to lessen the human impact on the local environment.*

UP:SC15.K.6

Vocabulary

  • Identify
  • Plan
  • Solution
  • Human impact
  • Local
  • Environment
  • Reduce
  • Reuse
  • Recycle
  • Causes
  • Create
  • Ask
  • Imagine
  • Improve

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Human impact can have both positive and negative impact on the environment.
  • We can create possible solutions to reduce the negative impacts on the environment.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Identify possible solutions to lessen human impact on the environment.
  • Plan possible solutions to lessen human impact on the environment.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • Human impact has a positive and negative effect on the local environment.
  • There are solutions that can lessen the negative impacts on a local environment.

Scientific and Engineering Practices

Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information

Crosscutting Concepts

Cause and Effect

Primary Learning Objectives

Students will

-identify reduce, reuse, and recycle strategies to help the environment.

-participate in a think-pair-share activity to discuss ideas about reducing, reusing, and recycling.

-participate in group discussion to chart ideas about reduce, reuse, and recycle.

-plan possible solutions to lessen the human impact on the local environment.

Additional Learning Objective(s)

Learning Targets:

I can

-identify possible solutions to lessen human impact on the local environment.

-plan possible solutions to lessen the human impact on the local environment.

-identify potential human impacts on the local environment.

Procedures/Activities

Day 1:

Build background knowledge with a guest speaker from a local recycling facility. (Topic:  "How can a kindergarten student lessen human impact on the local environment by recycling at home?")

Give students time to interact with the speaker and ask questions that the students developed prior to the lesson.

Students will draw a picture of how they can recycle at home. Students will dictate to the teacher (or write) a sentence about how they can recycle at home.

Day 2:

 Before the lesson:

Explicitly introduce the following vocabulary

1.  Reduce (show vocabulary card from printed materials)

Define: To reduce is to use less, which results in less waste.

Example: We can reduce by doing simple things such as turning off the lights when we leave a room or turning off the water when we brush our teeth.

Ask: What is a way you can reduce at school? (Students can partner talk or raise their hands with examples.)

2. Reuse (show vocabulary card from printed materials)

Define: To reuse is to use an item again instead of throwing it away.

Example: You can reuse the zip plastic bags from your lunchbox over and over again.

Ask: What is another way you can reuse something at home? (Students can partner talk or raise their hands with examples.)

3. Recycle (show vocabulary card from printed materials)

Define: Recycling is turning materials into a new item. Recycling prevents resources from being wasted. 

Example: You can recycle paper. The paper you recycle could be turned into new stationery.

Ask: What are some things we could recycle at school? (Students can partner talk or raise hands with examples.)

4. Environment (show vocabulary card from printed materials)

Define: The environment is the air, water, and land in or on which people, animals, and plants live.

Example: Most monkeys live in a jungle. This environment has many trees and is usually very hot and humid.

Ask: Describe the environment where fish live. (Students can partner talk or raise hands with examples.)

5. Impact (show vocabulary card from printed materials)

Define: If you impact something, you have an effect on it.

Example: If you litter, you impact the earth in a negative way. Litter makes the earth dirty. It can kill animals and plants. 

Ask: What is a positive way you can impact the earth? (Students can partner talk or raise hands with examples.)

Read learning targets together.

I can:

-identify possible solutions to lessen human impact on the local environment

-plan possible solutions to lessen the human impact on the local environment

-identify potential human impacts on the local environment

During the lesson:

Read: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Divide students into groups and use the "Think-Pair-Share" Method.  

The teacher will divide the students into partners and listen to discussions.

The students will sit criss-cross, look eye-to-eye with their partner, one friend will talk, and the other friend will listen.

Ask: 

1. What are some ways the Once-ler impacted the environment? Was this good for the environment or bad for the environment?

2. What do humans do that destroys the Earth's environment? (pollution, fires, vehicle fumes, littering, wasting electricity)

3. What are ways we can save our environment? (reduce, reuse, recycle, save water and electricity, ride a bike, walk, etc.)

Reread the statement from The Lorax, "Unless someone like you...cares a whole awful lot... nothing is going to get better...It's not."

Discussion of the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle)

Make a reduce, reuse, recycle chart to list ways your students can positively impact the environment by doing the 3Rs. (The directions are listed under "Background and Preparation.")

Reducing is to use less, which results in less waste. We can do this by doing simple things such as turning off the lights when we leave a room or turning off the water when we brush our teeth. List students' ideas on the chart.

Recycling is turning materials into a new item. Recycling prevents resources from being wasted. A wide range of things can be recycled including glass, paper, aluminum, and plastics. Items that can be recycled must be sorted and separated into material types.

There are two common household methods of helping increase recycling. The first is curbside collection where consumers leave presorted materials for recycling at the front of their property, typically in boxes or sacks to be collected by a recycling vehicle. (Find out if your community recycles.) The second method is where a householder takes the materials to be recycled to a recycling or collection facility. Discuss this information with your students.

Encourage students to bring in recyclable materials to be sorted. (These materials will be used in a later math lesson and recycled.)

Lead your students in a discussion on how recycling can positively impact the local environment. List their ideas on the chart.

Reuse: to use an item again instead of throwing it away. For example, plastic zip bags, broken crayons made into newly shaped crayons, the back side of a piece of paper, etc.

List students' ideas under reuse on the chart.

Read chart with students.

After the lesson:

Give students Post-it Notes to draw one of the strategies (reduce, reuse, recycle) as an exit slip. Students will place their exit slip on the class chart in the correct column.

After reviewing the exit slips, reteach areas as needed.

Play Kahoot! reduce, reuse, recycle online. https://create.kahoot.it/create#/edit/7b3787c5-5189-4259-9288-5fdba2d3c37e/done

 

Assessment Strategies

Formative Assessment: (Days 1 and 2) Students will be assessed informally through observation and questioning throughout the entire lesson.  

Summative Assessment: (Day 1) Students will draw a picture about the importance of recycling and dictate a sentence to the teacher about what they drew. The teacher will use this as an assessment for understanding.

(Day2) Students will draw one of the strategies (reduce, reuse, recycle) on a Post-it Note as an exit slip. Students will place their exit slip on the class chart in the correct column.

The Kahoot! quiz on reducing, reusing, and recycling will also serve as a formal assessment tool. 

https://create.kahoot.it/create#/edit/7b3787c5-5189-4259-9288-5fdba2d3c37e/done

Acceleration

Students could create their own reduce, reuse, recycle chart to be used at home.

Adopt a spot - Get permission to adopt an area on school grounds to keep clean, add bird feeders, and possibly plant a tree.

Make posters about the importance of reducing, reusing, recycling.  Place posters around the school encouraging others to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Intervention

Provide assistance to promote student thinking during the discussion, during the think-pair-share, and during group discussions, if needed.

After students complete exit slips, reteach the concepts of reduce, reuse, and recycle if needed.

After the Kahoot quiz, reteach the concepts of reduce, reuse, recycle if needed.

 

Total Duration

31 to 60 Minutes

Background/Preparation

Teacher Preparation

Print vocabulary cards on thick paper.

Print enough "How I Can Recycle at Home?" drawing sheets for the entire class.

Call your local recycling facility to ask for a guest speaker to share with students the importance of recycling and how they can recycle at home.

To create the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Chart: List the 3Rs - REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE across the top of chart paper.  (Teacher will use this chart to list students ideas under each of the 3R headings.)

Student Background Information/Preparation

Reducing, reusing, and recycling can lessen the impact on the environment.

Students should work with the teacher on developing questions for the guest speaker about how they (kindergarten students) can lessen the impact on the environment through recycling. Students should include questions about the local recycling plant and recycling procedures for their community.

Students should know and understand the rules and procedures for "Think / Pair / Share" (sit criss-cross, eye to eye, one friend talks and one friend listens, switch).

Students should know and understand the rules and procedures for playing Kahoot:  

  • The teacher will click on the link for Kahoot quiz to display the game number and questions on the SMARTboard. (The teacher will need to make a Kahoot account if he/she does not already have one.)

https://create.kahoot.it/create#/edit/7b3787c5-5189-4259-9288-5fdba2d3c37e/done

  • The students go to www.kahoot.it on their Chromebooks or iPads.  
  • The students will enter their names and the recycling quiz number that will be displayed on the interactive whiteboard.
  • The teacher will begin the quiz.
  • The students will choose answers in multiple choice questions. Points are given for correct answers. 
  • At the end of the quiz, a winner will be shown on the teacher's screen.  
  • The teacher can view the results for the entire class.  

 

Materials and Resources

Student Materials

"How I Can Recycle at Home?" drawing sheet (1 copy per student)

Pencil

Art supplies (colored pencils, crayons, markers, etc.)

Post-It notes

Teacher Materials

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle chart (specific directions for creating the chart are given in the background information)

Vocabulary cards

Kahoot! Quiz: https://create.kahoot.it/create#/edit/7b3787c5-5189-4259-9288-5fdba2d3c37e/done

Guest speaker from local recycling plant (Topic: How can a kindergarten student lessen human impact on the local environment through recycling at home?)

Technology Resources Needed

Interactive Whiteboard

Teacher computer

Chromebooks or iPad for students to play Kahoot quiz

Kahoot quiz: https://create.kahoot.it/create#/edit/7b3787c5-5189-4259-9288-5fdba2d3c37e/done

 

Approved Date

2017-04-05

Owner (Author)

aaaweaver
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