Where Your Trash Goes

Humans use consumable materials every day. When they are finished with their bag, cup, paper, etc, the materials get thrown in the garbage. The garbage gets picked up by the trash collector but then what happens to it? Investigate what effects trash has on the environment, where the trash goes, what processes it goes through, and what students can do to reduce the waste in our world.

Pleasant Hill

Iowa Core Standard

K-ESS3-3

Communicate solutions that will reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, air, and/or other living things in the local environment

Driving Question

How can your impact on the environment be improved?

Probing Questions

What is litter and why is it bad for the environment?
How do you think you can reduce the amount of waste?
What do you notice about the amount of garbage in our classroom, your house, etc?

Classroom Suggestions

Students could:

Have students conduct an investigation by weighing the trash each day to see how much waste there is and discuss how much waste there would be in a week, month, and year.
Invite a speaker from Metro Waste Authority to come to the classroom and share what happens at their facility.
Have a speaker from a recycling plant come to share how and what materials are recyclable.

Resources

Metro Waste Authority: This website provides several resources on waste, recycling and the environment.
PBS LearningMedia | Plum Landing: Oliver Takes Out the Trash: In this animated video from Plum Landing, Oliver is bummed to discover that when you dump your trash, it doesn’t just go “away,” it goes to an actual place. In Oliver’s case, that “place” is a river.

Contributors

Phenomena submitted by Janet Riordan