Compost Curriculum

Compost Curriculum Handbook

It doesn’t matter if you are a complete beginner, or a seasoned rotter; whether you have a ‘state of the art’ composter, or a neglected plastic ‘Dalek’ in the corner of the playground.

This handbook supports teachers to use composting as an inspiring teaching resource throughout the school year. For each month it contains a curriculum-linked KS2 lesson plan and an Eco Team activity, plus a wealth of supporting documents to bring composting to life for adults and pupils.

Recycling at Home


Use our Recycling at Home worksheet to help teach about responsibility for the environment as part of PSHE. With the help of the internet or a council recycling leaflet and student’s creativity they can make their own poster that showing their different waste containers, what goes in them, and when they are collected. Then encourage students to do the recycling at home, find out where the containers are stored and help take the recycling out to the street on the day it is collected.

Don’t forget to send us any pictures of any home challenges you tackle at @RecycleDevon on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!

Download 3Rs at Home Worksheet: Recycling at Home

NOTE: This Activity Worksheet was first released as part of our series of 3Rs at Home worksheets created during the first coronavirus lockdown in Spring 2020, but is a stand-alone activity suitable for home schooling or teaching in-school.

Find related videos and links below:

Find out what district you live in

Click here for more information about your local council recycling service

Download Thank You Recycling Poster

Recycling Wordsearch

students talk through a problem in a team

Financial Awareness

Financial knowledge and decision-making skills use concepts from Maths and Computing to understand how to make decisions about what to buy and how to stay within a budget.

We have developed a project based learning activity to help KS3 and 4 students use real-world examples to practice financial decision-making skills. Our activity is based around reusable versus disposable products.

Comparing Reusable and Disposable Products

There are a variety of reusable products available which have disposable options as well. Use this comparison project to develop student’s budgeting and calculation skills. Many adults find this difficult, so they will develop important financial awareness skills with this engaging activity.

Subject: PSHE, Life Skills, Maths

Spotlight on: Comparison of costs of two options over time

Driving Question: How can I compare two similar products?

students talk through a problem in a team

Process

  1. Hold a discussion about money and budgeting. Ask students what they see their parents doing at home. Discuss ways of saving money, like going to different supermarkets for different offers, or comparing options using a price comparison website.
  2. In groups ask students to brainstorm how many reusable products and their disposable options are available. Ask groups to share. Expect items like face masks, nappies, period products (see our pages on Reusable Period Products), handkerchiefs. More unusual ones might be ear protection, paper towels, toilet paper (family cloths are the reusable option!).
  3. Ask the groups to choose one item to compare. Using computers and iPads ask students to start researching the costs of reusable and disposable items. Supermarket websites will have costs for the most easily available options like disposable nappies and period products. Specialist websites will sell reusable options.
  4. Ask groups to compare the costs over a certain time period. This could be for the first 3 years of a child’s life for nappies or the period of time a person menstruates (about 40 years).
  5. Ask students to prepare a presentation to the rest of the class comparing the costs. Students could also prepare a leaflet for the public or their families. They could even ask the school to send information home with families if they wished to.
  6. Make sure students understand that the cost of products often does not represent their environmental cost, i.e. the cost of disposal of the item – e.g. nappies end up in black bin bags, which are burnt for energy in Devon. This is a very expensive process. Reusable products are better for the environment and can help save money too.

Two simple metal dustbins on a patio.

Summer holiday activity: What was it like?

What was rubbish collection like in the old days? Start a conversation with an older friend or relative and find out!

An illustration of a chair and a glass bottle, along with the words Guess the Word. The background consists of question marks.

Summer Holiday Activities: Guess the Word

This guess the word game focused on materials will get the whole family involved!

10 magazines opened and placed on top of one another.

Summer holiday activity: Got magazines? Make recycled beads!

Try making these wonderful African style beads from old magazines.

Reuse Olympics

3Rs Activities at Home: The Reuse Olympics!

Create your own games using reused items from around your house, garden and recycling!

Recycling at Home

3Rs Activities at Home: Recycling at Home

Make a poster to find out more about your local recycling collections in this week’s activity!