Curated OER
The Impact
Students investigate the impact inventions have on society. In this technology lesson plan, students review the facts they learned about famous inventors and brainstorm an invention that can improve people's lives. Students use a graphic...
Curated OER
Landfill Lounge
Students accurately construct a model of a sanitary landfill and identify the parts of the landfill and explain their function. They work in grous using a clear plastic box, modeling clay, soil and a variety of garbage to create their...
Curated OER
Landfills
Students explore the roles of sanitary landfills. They diagram the construction of a landfill and visit a local landfill.
Curated OER
Compost Columns
In this unit of lessons, students examine the role of compost columns and recycling. They create a KWL chart about garbage in Chicago. They also examine life cycles and packaging of everyday products.
Curated OER
Fur, Feathers and Fins
Students examine the stages between growing the animal and buying it at the grocery store. In food system lesson students study the role that animal products have on nutrition and study animal agriculture.
Curated OER
Pollution and Conservation
In this pollution and conservation worksheet, students read a passage on pollution and conservation, and answer short answer, multiple choice, and vocabulary matching questions. Students complete 27 questions.
The World Bank
World Bank: What a Waste: Updated Look Into the Future of Solid Waste Management
This article describes the global problem of waste and some of the sustainable waste management projects that the World Bank supports. Includes a link to a report called "What a Waste 2.0: A Global Snapshot of Solid Waste Management to...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Solid Waste Takes Over
In this lesson, students explore solid waste and its effects on the environment. They will collect classroom trash for analysis and build model landfills in order to understand the process and impact of solid waste management. Students...
Other
Solid Waste Association of North America
A good place to learn about current issues in the solid wastes world. Two of the most useful sections are "hot topics" and "contact us", both of which can be used to find out more about municipal solid waste management.
eSchool Today
E School Today: Waste Management
Learn all the aspects of waste management including recycling and solid waste disposal.
Other
Univ. Of Idaho: Principles of Sustainability: Chapter 3: The Culture of Waste
This is the third chapter in an online course on sustainability. It examines solid waste management in developed and developing countries. It looks at the global waste crisis and at options for dealing with it. Includes a video [41:50]...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Epa: Land, Waste, and Cleanup Topics
This site is loaded with information on solid waste and hazardous waste. It includes industries' effects on the environment, waste programs, treatment, control, pollution prevention, recycling, and cleanup programs.
Other
World Economic Forum: What the World's Waste Does to People in Poorer Countries
Describes the serious global waste crisis, the problem of plastic waste, the issue of wealthy countries exporting their trash to less-developed ones, informal waste management practices, and electronic waste dumps. The article ends with...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Garbage: Solid Waste
In this article, you can learn about solid wastes. It discusses the problems associated with disposal and possible solutions.
Other
New Brunswick Waste Management /"Backyard Magic"
Comprehensive description of the environmental benefits of composting solid waste. Complete directions for composting, detailed description of composting chemistry, suggestions for applications of humus, question and answer page,...
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Centers for Disease Control: Atsdr: Superfund Hazardous Waste Sites
Extremely detailed look at the dangers associated with the hazardous and solid waste sites in the U.S.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: 3 Rc (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Compost)
For this lesson, students expand their understanding of solid waste management to include the idea of 3RC (reduce, reuse, recycle and compost). They will look at the effects of packaging decisions (reducing) and learn about engineering...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Garbage: How Can My Community Reduce Waste?
A website devoted to the challenge of reducing solid waste for the good of our environment.
SRI International
Performance Assessment Links in Science: Discovering the Problem of Solid Waste
This activity has students sort garbage, graph their results and propose ways of reducing waste.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: It's All in the Package
In this activity, students explore the concept of "reducing" solid waste and how it relates to product packaging and engineering advancements in packaging materials. Students read about and evaluate the highly publicized packaging...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: This Landfill Is a Gas!
In this activity, students work as engineers to build and observe a model landfill. They will understand the process and pitfalls of the use of landfills as a method for the waste disposal.
Other
Waste Age: Computing the Damage
This article chronicles the problems of disposing obsolete computers and other electronics, the harmful substances they add to landfills here and abroad, and projections for the future.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Composting Nature's Disappearing Act
In this activity, students explore the idea of biodegradability by building and observing a model landfill. This serves as an introduction to the idea of composting. Students learn about the role of engineering in solid waste management.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Trash Talkin'
In this activity, students collect, categorize, weigh and analyze classroom solid waste. The class collects waste for a week and then student groups spend a day sorting and analyzing the garbage with respect to recyclable and non...