Recycling Education Kits: Trash or Treasure Activity
Have you been searching for an exciting, hands-on recycling education lesson for your students? Look no further, we’ve developed recycling education kits designed to spark students' curiosity and concern for the environment.
Recycling education kits are available for download below or as a ready-to-go packet of printed material & supplies.
The “Trash or Treasure Trek” activity is designed for students to observe and evaluate various images of items they might normally find at home or in their community. Students may work together as a class or in smaller groups, discussing and sorting the items to determine if each could be reused, recycled, needs special handling, or should be thrown away.
The recycling education kits are designed to help students explore their surroundings and foster a deeper sense of care and responsibility for the environment. Kits are available in three different grade ranges, with activities matched to students’ learning levels.
Have questions? Reach out to the staff of the Environmental Division at 605-367-8280.
Kindergarten to 2nd Grade Students
- Conduct nature walks around the school yard and neighborhood.
- Learn to care for the environment around the school and recognize ways to reuse various materials.
- Learn to develop personal habits that display concern for the environment.
- Recognize ways to reduce, recycle, reuse, and renew.
Download Kit for Grades K-2
3rd to 5th Grade Students
- Learn to describe ways that humans impact air, water, or habitat quality.
- Learn to describe ways to recycle, reuse, and reduce consumption.
- Explain how new ideas and inventions often affect people.
- Describe how natural events and/or human influences may help or harm ecosystems.
Download Kit for Grades 3-5
6th to 8th Grade Students
- Describe how science and technology have helped society to solve problems, such as waste management.
- Recognize how to predict the consequences of human activity on the local, regional, or global environment.
- Discuss solutions to problems created by human activity in the local, regional, or global environment.
Download Kit for Grades 6-8
Ready to Go Recycling Education Kits
This comprehensive, all-in-one kit is designed to provide educators with engaging lessons and activities focused on the 3 R's: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. It offers hands-on materials and structured instructions that teachers can easily integrate into science, social studies, and art curricula.
The Ready-to-go recycling education kits are available for instructors to borrow for up to 2 weeks. Instructors must be at least 18 years old and work or live within the five-county region of Lake, Lincoln, McCook, Minnehaha, or Turner counties. Ready-to-go kits must be picked up and returned to the City of Sioux Falls’ Environmental Center (1017 E. Chambers St., Sioux Falls).
Reserve a Ready-To-Go Kit