One Person's Garbage, Another Person's . .
.?
Submitted by: Sheryl Weinberg
School or Affiliation: Southeast Island School District Ketchikan, AK
Endorsed by: These lesson plans are the result of the work of the teachers who have
attended the Columbia Education Center's Summer Workshop. CEC is a consortium of teacher
from 14 western states dedicated to improving the quality of education in the rural,
western, United States, and particularly the quality of math and science Education. CEC
uses Big Sky Telegraph as the hub of their telecommunications network that allows the
participating teachers to stay in contact with their trainers and peers that they have met
at the Workshops.
Date: May 1994
Grade Level/Subject: US-HS, Social Studies ( Level 5 )
Overview:
It's no secret that a wealth of discarded products will outlast most people alive
today. . . a disturbing legacy. Heightening the collective consciousness of citizenry has
yielded some improved practices. The problem may be slowing slightly, but it is not going
away. In geographically remote localities, where landfill operations lack technological
advances, or may perhaps be nonexistent, the problem holds special significance.
This lesson will ask students to consider the issue of waste recycling alternatives for
isolated settings. They will be asked to transform discarded solid waste into a usable
item.
Student Motivation: Ask the students: "What happens to discarded
solid waste in our community? How do disposal practices impact our lives? What kind of
things are discarded?" As a class, visit the landfill site, or an appropriate
alternative. Following the field experience, have students list and discuss what they saw.
Next have them compare/contrast the same set of questions relative to a remote
environment.
Problem: The students will list many, different and unusual items that
could be constructed out of refuse and found objects. Construction resources are to
include only hand tools and personpower.
Academic Concepts: Waste management. Design and measurement. Model
building.
Activities and Procedures:
- Students will be asked to reflect on the questions listed under "student
motivation". They will make notes or drawings of their ideas for 5 minutes. Students
will participate in a discussion of the issues using their notations as a resource.
- Students will visit a landfill. Following the visitation, as a group, they will
synthesize what they saw and their reactions.
- Students will break into groups of two. Each group will be provided with a profile of a
rural/remote community, including waste disposal issues. Each group will read and discuss
the profile.
- Given ten minutes, each group will list many, different and unusual items that could be
developed from their communities solid waste. Each group will share their ideas with the
class.
- Each group will create a usable object from scavenged refuse, using hand tools and
personpower. Refuse selected needs to reflect that which would be found in their assigned
community. Upon completion the object will be described, photographed and displayed. (At
the onset of the project students will be asked to keep a journal of the evolution of
their project.)
Optional Follow Up: Each group will be afforded the
opportunity to forward a description and photograph of their creation to members of their
assigned community.
Evaluation:
Many - Total number of usable objects that can be made out of solid waste using
hand tools and personpower.
Different - Number of categories that waste product objects can be grouped into.
Unusual - One-of-a-kind objects that can be made from solid waste.
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