The first STEM lesson in a group of 10 explores composting. After discussing how to make a better tomorrow, classes are challenged to track garbage in their communities, visit a local waste management facility, and conduct a survey about...

Reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover. Young environmentalists learn about the overwhelming amount of garbage produced and discover better ways to minimize their impact on Earth by learning the difference between garbage and recyclables. 

Trying to plan an engaging elementary science unit on natural resources? Conserve your energy! This five-part series of lessons and hands-on activities has exactly what you need to teach young scholars about the importance of conservation.

During a three-part lesson, learners make a cabbage juice pH indicator and use it to analyze the waste products of yeast after feeding them with sugar. The intent is to demonstrate how living organisms produce carbon dioxide, which is...

Dice and playing cards are used to play a "resourceful" board game! Correct answers to questions on the cards get garbage to be reused, recycled, or composted, while incorrect answers get garbage sent to the landfill. Landfill points are...

Biotechnology pros produce their own biofuel using waste oil and fresh vegetable oil. They test the quality of their product using titration techniques and pH analysis. They write their observations and report their findings. Be aware...

This is an exceptional series that you can use in an environmental or engineering unit. There are four lessons: "Sustainable Transportation," "Designing for Safety," "Changing the Landscape," and "Engaging in Policy." Each lesson...

Here is an interesting worksheet on waste. It puts waste into seven hierarchical categories. The text associated with the worksheet is interesting to read, then learners must give an example of types of waste that fit into each of the...

Here is a good worksheet on waste and how waste negatively affects the environment. Learners look at a floor plan of a typical house, and must write down the kinds of waste usually produced from those areas of the house. There are eight...

Geology whizzes observe the effects of change within a model of a watershed. They place replica waste dumps within the models and note the path that the waste takes as water passes through. This detailed lesson plan provides teacher...

Follow the life of an apple from harvest to the consumer. A three-part lesson describes the different steps to get an apple from the farmer to your kitchen and the approximate waste that happens at each step. They discuss the process and...

Out of sight out of mind can be a dangerous habit. Learners investigate the life of food waste after it leaves people's homes and its impact on the environment. They complete a series of three activities that involve building a mini...

Take a tiered approach to studying waste. The lesson uses Earth Day to present differentiated instruction around using circle and bar graphs. Each group gets a cube based on their tiers and works collaboratively as well as individually...

Less than eight percent of AP Environmental Science test takers earn the highest score possible. Help scholars improve their scores by using actual test questions on water quality and urban planning before reading sample responses that...

The average student scores less than three points, out of five, on the AP Environmental Science test. Most do well on the multiple choice and struggle with the free-response section. Encourage extra free-response practice with actual...

We all need clean air and water. An informative video first describes the causes of water contamination in Flint, Michigan. It then goes on to explain the importance of environmental engineering in clean air, clean water, and waste...

One in every seven truckloads of perishable foods delivered to grocery stores gets thrown away. Is there anything that can be done with this waste? One solution is to recycle the old produce and turn it into fertilizer. The video, part...

Explore the process of wastewater treatment. Scholars analyze different samples of water before making conclusions about the types of chemicals in the water that leaves our homes. 

Explore how chemical processes reduce production waste. The 19th lesson in a 24-part series has learners explore the impact of green chemistry techniques on waste in production scenarios. They consider petrochemicals, bulk chemicals,...

Statistically, waste may become a problem in the future if people do not take action. Using their knowledge of statistics and data representation, pupils take a look at the idea of waste generation. The four-part unit has class members...

Is incineration the answer to waste management challenges? A comprehensive lesson explores the advantages and disadvantages to incinerating waste. Scholars learn methods of incineration and the uses of the biproducts of the process.