Find out what is recycled in your area.
Show the children the sign to look for. The Triangle means it is recyclable.
Children are very adaptable and learn very fast, especially when you practice daily.
I washed out the recyclable item, passed it onto my child (aged 5, 3 & 2 at the time) and asked them which bin it goes into. Children regularly tip the bucket of recyclable materials into our recycle bin.
Children would then search for triangles on grocery items at the shops before even being purchased.
Bush Walking
Another natural learning activity we took part in was picking up aluminium cans from the bushes, we talked about how it is not good practice to throw rubbish in the bush or on the ground, enforcing using bins.
2 years on the children still talk about doing this and how it is not good for the environment to throw rubbish on the ground
Using up what we have
We always discuss using up what we have already.
Recycling Paper
Being homeschoolers we go through a lot of paper, or a lot of paper comes through our hands. We have dealt with paper by shredding it and...
- Compost
- Worm Farm
- Chicken bed layering
- Baby duck/ Baby chicken bedding
- On the garden
- Local pet shop
Our Personal Journey
We used to live in a VERY small house where space was limited and storage was non-existent. We didn't even have a shed for storage.
Growing up in a recycling/keep-everything-that-could-be-used kind of home I grew a stockpile or recyclable materials very quickly. The problem was I had nowhere to store it, and was not using it.
The time came when I discovered that these items would actually be more useful in our local recycling plant than clogging up my home. I packed them all up, put them in the recycle bin, and have never looked back nor missed those items.
Internally this felt like a much needed release of relief as my home become more manageable and clutter-free.
2 years on, I now put all these items straight into the recycle bin where they can be turned into something else.
Okay, I admit, now that we are in a bigger home with loads of storage we are growing a 'useful' box of recyclable materials for crafting activities.
Homeschooling
Teaching children to respect the environment and to practice sustainability naturally means they will be more likely to live it out in their adult years. Under the Government Curriculum Framework this practice falls into the category of Society and Environment.
To further this area of knowledge, simply go for a walk to your local water ways to discover what has happened to the rivers and lakes.
You Tube
We've watched documentaries on what they do with the recyclable materials and what can happen if they are not. I find it interesting and so do SOME of my children ;)
There is so much available to view! Go check it out.
Recyclable Truck
The kids love watching the garbage truck come every week receiving a double viewing every fortnight when the recycle truck comes. Even after 2 1/2years of weekly stop-what-your-doing-and-run-to-the-window/gate and it gives so much to talk about.
Tip Runs
Naturally we take children wherever we go and specifically use tip runs as educational experiences. Children are so curious as to the environments they are in and the tip is no exception. The smells stimulate our senses in such a way we desire to recycle more and waste less. We drive past the recycle shed as slowly as we can to catch the glimpse inside of sorted-by-hand recycling.
We discuss the piles of mattress's, metals, plastics and green wastes before dropping our gear off.
We watch and talk about the giant machinery that workers use.
We discuss the activitiy of all the different birds.
We notice the plastics caught in trees and fences along the ways
We drive past the neatly packed recyclable materials ready and waiting to be trucked off to their designated places
Disclaimer: These are just SOME of the ways we are teaching recycling and sustainability to our children. I'm open to ideas if you have any available, and especially any links involved :)
5 Things I am Thankful for:
1. Having a town that recycles
2. Children learning daily and naturally in a way that supports maintaining order cleanliness within the home
3. Enthusiastic interest in the mundane
4. Over-abundance of the country we live in
5. Not feeling that I am being wasteful by 'throwing out' recyclable materials to the recycling plant
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