Recycle Devon – this site is a resource for Devon residents to find out about Reducing, Reusing and Recycling. Users can find out detailed information about the collections in their area as well as loads of other useful information to help them Reduce, Reuse and Recycle more effectively.
Recycle now – offers advice on putting recycling into practice in schools, information on how to recycle tricky items, and how to reduce your waste effectively.
WRAP Resource Library – a great new range of teaching resources for Key Stages 1 and 2 including films and linked activities which can be used in the classroom, assemblies or during eco-weeks. They all feature the popular characters, Busta and Pong!
3R’s poster for primary schools – free downloadable and printable resource to use in the classroom.
British Glass – facts about glass recycling.
Did you know… every tonne of glass re-melted saves 246 kg of carbon dioxide emissions. Recycling glass saves energy and reduces reliance on virgin raw materials.
Think Cans – a variety of aluminium education resources for all ages.
Educational resources for KS1 and KS2 to introduce the idea of metal recycling into the classroom, detailed lesson plans and presentations for KS3/4 and potential field trip ideas for all ages.
Metal Packaging Manufacturers Association (MPMA) – lesson plans and teaching resources about steel and aluminium recycling. The resources have been written by educational and industry experts and each unit indicates the target age group and curriculum links and includes lessons, teacher information and worksheets where applicable. All pages can be easily downloaded or printed.
Recycle More – this area has been designed for teachers and pupils to use, to be carried out at school or at home. A variety of “rubbish” science experiments, resources for using in English or Maths classes and activities to get children thinking. Activities are aged appropriately and by school age; primary and secondary.
Show me what you’re made of (2017 BBC series)- a group of 5 teens explore what it’s like to work in a recycling facility with Suez, who also operate in Devon (appropriate for Ks3/4).
YouTube Video: How long does it take for rubbish to rot (KS1/2)- a group of children explore how different materials decompose through science experiments.
YouTube Video: Sorting materials to be recycled (KS1/2)- a group of children explore how materials are recycled.
Keep Britain Tidy – an educational initiative to reduce litter, cut waste, improve public space while educating future generations. The website also contains a downloadable learning pack to support Keep Britain Tidy’s litter campaign.
How to run a whole school litter campaign guide – this 89-page pack has been designed for use by both teachers and pupils in primary schools, and contains a variety of useful information, resources, lesson ideas, curriculum links and practical suggestions about how you can raise awareness and tackle the issue of litter in your school and local area.
Plastic Free Schools – this ground-breaking programme equips and empowers young activists with the tools to create positive, lasting environmental change. Created to hit key curriculum targets from KS1 – KS3, the packs guide students through the plastic free school’s process in an easy to understand, purposeful and fun way!
Printable litter free activity book – produced for children aged 7-10 and designed to teach them how to keep their surroundings beautiful.
Kids Against Plastic – downloadable teacher’s resources with lesson plans and workshop ideas; from trash islands to cigarette butts, the packs cover a broad range of plastic issues. They are designed by teachers so fit within the national curriculum.
Throughout the whole of 2017 artist Daniel Webb kept all his plastic. He recorded each item on a website called Everyday Plastic and then turned it into a piece of art which made the news worldwide. His website reports on the most recent survey: Lockdown Edition. This provides a fascinating insight into modern life through our plastic waste.
The National Trust – keeping the South-West coast beautiful campaign organises beach cleans. This website allows you to sign up but also highlights some of the unusual litter items which have been found on the shores of Devon.
Marine Conservation Society – beach clean event finder for school groups. Sign up for a beach clean led by one of the Beach Watch volunteer organisers or register as one yourself!
#2MinuteBeachClean – Martin Dorey, the Founder, is available for talks and lectures, beach cleans and school visits. He is a TEDx speaker and has spoken at lots of conferences and events. He has also spoken at primary and secondary schools around the West Country and led and inspired beach clean projects, including our first record–breaking mass #2minutebeachclean with 290 students from Bideford College.
Blue Peter Beach Clean – great video introducing the issue of marine litter, Blue Peter (CBBC) conducts a beach clean with local children.
Love Food Hate Waste – education on how to reduce your food waste and cut costs of spending through articles and videos.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Food Waste Warrior Toolkit – teaching tools about food waste. The food waste warrior toolkit provides lessons, activities and resources to share how what we eat and what we throw away impacts our planet by creating a classroom in the cafeteria.
WRAP– food waste key facts and figures.
WRAP Resource Library – reducing food waste in schools’ activities.
- 1. Improving the familiarity and appreciation of school meals.
WRAP Resource Library – reducing food waste in schools’ activities.
2. Improving the dining experience.
WRAP Resource Library – reducing food waste in schools’ activities.
3. Meals cooked to order.
BBC – Climate change food calculator: What’s your diet’s carbon footprint? Graphs and interactive content highlighting the environmental impact of your food choices and which diets are preferable for the future.
10 stories about food waste: (KS3/4) 25 minute documentary about all aspects of food waste.
National Association for Environmental Education (NAEE) – NAEE has been promoting environmental education for nearly 60 years. It supports all those involved in delivery of environmental education around the UK, so that together we can understand and act on the need to live more sustainably in order to protect the future of our planet.
Practical Action has 4 aims: building climate resilience, transforming small-scale food production, making cities better places to live and using clean energy. It provides real and practical solutions to all these challenges, and also has some fantastic related teaching resources.
Countryside Classroom – these pages help teachers to find resources, places to visit and school support relating to the themes of food, farming and the natural environment. Our site contains a range of quality assured educational content from hundreds of contributors.
BP educational pages – free Science, Design and Technology and Geography resources to inspire pupils aged 4 to 19 throughout primary and secondary school.
Top Tips for Sustainability in Schools – 28-page Department for Education guide giving tips for schools to be more sustainable. Including reducing carbon, energy, water use, waste and encouraging sustainable travel and purchasing within schools.
The Story of Stuff – We have a problem with Stuff, we have too much of it, too much of it is toxic and we don’t share it very well. But that’s not the way things have to be.
The Ellen Macarthur Foundation – the Ellen MacArthur Foundation was launched in 2010 to accelerate the transition to a circular economy. Since its creation the charity has emerged as a global thought leader, establishing the circular economy on the agenda of decision makers across business, government, and academia. Resources on this website are tailored to school and college education lesson plans.
The Ellen Macarthur Foundation – HOW WE MAKE STUFF – kids page highlighting the process into making “stuff” and how it could be made differently.
The Ellen Macarthur Foundation: circular economy explanation – great 3-minute short video clearly explaining the concept of the circular economy.
School Gardening – the RHS Campaign for School Gardening inspires and supports schools to provide children with gardening opportunities to enhance their skills and boost their development.
Garden Organic – on this page you’ll find links to practical advice and activities for all ages on how to start and maintain an organic food growing garden. Handy, quick-reference Growing Instruction Cards, Activity sheets and much more.
Budding Gardeners – Ideas of what to do in the school garden using a term to term breakdown. This easy to follow website is packed full of tips and interactive features to be used within schools.
LEAF – leaf helps teachers and schools’ leaders access great content, relevant training and tailored advice so that they can create powerful learning experiences about food and farming, in both the classroom and the countryside.
Social Farms and Garden – this fact sheet provides an introduction to making your project child-friendly. It includes discussion of the relevant legislation, outlines good practice and provides suggestions for activities that you can do to enthuse children about nature and growing.
The Soil Association – the UK’s leading membership non-profit, campaigning for healthy, humane and sustainable food, farming and land use.
Did you know…
- On average, just one person in the UK will produce 70 kg of textile waste per year.
- Every year UK households emit around 1.5 tonnes of CO2 from their new and existing clothing – a carbon footprint that is equal to 6,000 miles travelled in an average modern car.
- The average life of a garment in the UK is 2.2 years.
Use these resources to change your attitude towards fast fashion at school or home to ensure the way you buy, use and discard clothes is as sustainable as possible.
WRAP, love your clothes – website on how to wear clothing more sustainably.
Sustainability in Style – fast fashion tips and facts!
Fashion Revolution – free educational resources highlighting the issue behind fast fashion and what can be done. The resources range from presentations and interactive content for a range of ages.
TRAID has launched Behind the Seams – a new free resource to support educators to promote education for sustainability. The toolkit uses participatory teaching methods to explore the socio-environmental impacts of how we produce, consume and waste clothes to equip young people with the knowledge and actions needed to shape a more sustainable society. The toolkit is aimed at KS3 and KS4 but has been designed to be used as widely as possible. It contains six lesson plans across three themes – production, consumption and waste – and includes worksheets, slide show presentations and fact sheets to support educators to deliver lessons.
Oxfam has a brilliant Blog all about sustainable fashion. Keep up with the latest trends, while still saving the world!
Did you know – Oxfam’s Clothes Sorting and Recycling Plant in Batley, West Yorkshire is the biggest in Britain!
