In response to teacher popular demand, we have developed a new lesson series on waste management and the 3 Rs (reduce, reuse, and recycle). The lesson series is titled My Journey to Zero Waste and it teaches environmental literacy for Kindergarten and Grade 1 through 5 lessons in which students explore their environmental impact through two birthday parties and the subsequent waste that is created or not created in each.
Throughout the 5 lessons, students will learn how waste is generated, what happens to the waste we create, the benefits of the 3Rs, how to calculate waste, and gain an understanding of their own individual impact on sustainability and the environment. Students will be exposed to new concepts and vocabulary through an array of games and activities culminating in an analysis of their own waste generation and a zero-waste action plan.
My Journey to Zero Waste covers important California learning standards in science, English language arts, and math. The lesson series includes a family guide with after-school extensions for classrooms and students who want to take an even deeper dive into their zero waste journeys.
Click here to access the My Journey to Zero Waste K-1 lesson series!
Relevant Links
Learn about the role our local wetlands and waterways play in waste management and how we can become better guardians of our environment.
Elkus Ranch Educational Tours – Elkus Ranch
Learn about sustainability and waste management on the ranch through one of Elkus Ranch’s guided tours.
Schoolyard Cleanup Program – California Coastal Commission
Organize and or participate in a Coastal Cleanup Day on a field trip to a beach or local waterway, become environmental stewards of your schoolyard, gain experience in real-world data collection and problem solving.
Virtual Learning – Recology Waste Zero
Recology currently offers a suite of online resources for students and families that is free and accessible online. Resources include virtual tours, videos, and worksheets, as well as opportunities to arrange live virtual field trips with a Recology educator.
Watsonville Green Schools Waste Reduction Assistance
Watsonville Green Schools: Waste Reduction Assistance Training and support for the food scrap collection system for your cafeteria. Advice to improve your school waste reduction: food recovery, food scarp collection, blue cart recyclables, and more. Classroom and cafeteria educational presentations offered.
News and Events
CELF Summer Institute 2021: Education for Sustainability
Jul. 06-08, 2021 CELF
This 3-day online institute will introduce how to apply education for sustainability as a lens for learning. Participants will explore CELF’s Big Ideas of Sustainability Framework to identify ways to reflect on personal values and implement the big ideas into current teaching practices.
eeWORKS: Demonstrating the Power of Environmental Education
Jul. 07, 2021 NAAEE
Whether you are an educator, EE provider, funder, or advocate, learn how to use the data from eeWORKS to back up the feel-good EE stories you hear about to support your work.
National Marine Educators Association Conference
Jul. 14-17, 2021 National Marine Educators Association
The conference theme is “Your Connection to Water,” focusing on our personal connection to water, as well as the virtual connection to which we have all become so familiar.
On climate change frontline, indigenous provide pointers to save planet
Jun. 25, 2021 UN News
Indigenous people living on the frontline of climate change could offer potentially ground-breaking insight into biodiversity protection and sustainability, but they urgently need help to withstand a growing number of threats to their way of life.
Why are we under-educating the greatest workers and innovators in the world?
Jun. 25, 2021 The Hill
Creating a climate literate population has not been a priority for the U.S., despite the obvious political, economic, and environmental risks and opportunities looming on the not-too-distant horizon.
How urban gardens can boost biodiversity and make cities more sustainable
Jun. 28, 2021 The Conversation
In building cities, we have created some of the harshest habitats on Earth — and then chosen to live in them. Temperatures in cities are typically 2 C to 3 C warmer than those of the surrounding landscape.
Biden EPA Appears to Side With Chemical Industry in Microplastics Health Conflict: Greenpeace Investigation
Jun. 29, 2021 EcoWatch
A Greenpeace investigation revealed Monday that the Biden administration appears sympathetic to oil and chemical industry giants — not the public, scientists, and public health advocates — regarding a push in Europe to curb the use of microplastics in everyday products.
These farmers show that agriculture in the Amazon doesn’t have to be destructive
Jun. 29, 2021 National Geographic
This part of Brazil’s Amazon rainforest is being used for agroforestry, areas where farmers are replanting the forest with local crops.
Podcast: Connecting kids and ourselves to nature
Jun. 30, 2021 Mongabay
Joined by Richard Louv, the podcast discusses the latest research showing how important it is to connect kids to nature and educate them about the environment.
Watch Out! There’s a New Ocean on the Block
Jun. 30, 2021 Discovery
A new ocean has been added to the list. The Southern Ocean becomes the fifth ocean to be officially recognized on the world map.
