One person's trash is another man's treasure. Challenge your class to build something useful out of the trash they throw away on a regular basis. Groups design and build a practical item from trash they collect, allowing the class to think about the ways they can help the environment by reusing items they normally would throw into the landfill.

Concepts

landfills, recycling, design, engineering design, climates, climate change, pollution, technology resources

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Instructional Ideas

• Have teams follow the design process in creating their treasures

Classroom Considerations

• The Carbon Print worksheet is the same worksheet from the Global Climate Change lesson
• Collect trash/recyclables for a couple of weeks before the activity
• The final activity in a 12-part series

Pros

• The assessment section provides questions to ask before the activity
• The scaling section provides suggestions for ways to alter the activity for lower and upper grades

Cons

• None

Common Core

6.RP.A.3.b 6.NS.B.3 6.SP.B.5.a