Investigate plastic use through an audit to identify areas where avoidable waste can be reduced.
Grade Level: 4-6
Learning Objectives:
- Explain what single-use plastics are, giving examples
- Name potential impacts of plastic on the environment
- Evaluate results of an audit and generate ideas for reducing the use of plastic
During this activity students will:
- Learn about different uses of single-use plastics (convenience, health and safety)
- Carry out an audit to determine most common single-use plastic items at the school
- Develop and share awareness messages on reducing plastic use
Materials
- Gloves
- Hand sanitizer
- Tarps
Instructions
- Invite students to share what they know about single-use plastics and how they can impact the environment (pollution, animals might mistake them for food, they can hurt habitats). Ask them which types of single-use plastics they think are the most common at their school.
- Explain that you are going to do an audit to see how much single-use plastic is being used around you. Students will be separated into smaller groups and each group will receive a recycling bin to go through. They will look through the recycling bin and separate the single-use plastics by type.
- Review proper handling of litter and then get started.
- Once finished, have each group share their results and discuss. The following questions can be used as a guide.
- Why do you think we found so many plastic straws/plastic forks/etc.? What is one way we could encourage people to use less of them?
- Why do we use single use plastics? How could we change this?
- How can we get others to stop using single-use plastics?
- As a class, find a way to share information about the audit and ways to cut back on single use plastics, for example:
- Create a report about the audit for the school newsletter/website
- Share the results with the school through announcements or visiting classes
Resources
To help students understand the impact of single-use plastics, take the How Long ‘Til it’s “Gone” Quiz and discuss the results or watch the video Single-use plastic, microplastics are an environmental disaster (CBC Kids News, 2022, 5 mins).