Teaching Resources

Welcome to our Waste and Recycling teaching resources section.

Here you’ll find information packs, detailed lesson plans and a wide selection of curriculum linked activity ideas that can be easily adapted to suit the group’s needs.

We’ve put together some fun waste themed activity sheets to help to keep children busy while they’re studying at home.

Find out about recycling, search for compost creatures, have a go at cooking with leftovers or create a single-use sea creature.

Please click here to access the activity sheets.

The government has challenged schools to reduce their single-use plastics and products by 2022. Our ‘Reduce single-use award scheme’ and accompanying education pack,  containing lots of information, practical ideas and activity suggestions, will help you to help you to reduce single-use one step at a time.

From plastic wrapped sandwiches and disposable spoons to pre-packed snacks and throw away bottles, schools play host to a whole range of single-use products. Single-use products are items that are only used once before being thrown away or recycled. Huge amounts of energy and resources are used to create them and, although only used for a few moments, will have a long-lasting impact on our planet.

Getting involved with this project is not only a great way of involving pupils in tackling important environmental issues, but it will also allow you to earn awards for your schools and can help towards achieving an Eco-schools award too.

For further information and to sign up please click here.

Lunchtimes can be a very wasteful time in schools, with pupils bringing lots of throw away packaging in their packed lunches. Challenging them to bring in a ‘waste free lunch’, that produces as little waste as possible, is a great way to address this. Our waste free lunch pack contains lots of ideas and information to get you started. Access the free resource pack here.

Join in with Norfolk’s Litter Campaign, designed to help primary school teachers raise awareness about the issues surrounding litter and to provide support with taking practical action to tackle the problem. This pack contains lots of information, facts, an assembly plan, curriculum linked activity ideas, games and advice on organising a school litter pick. Please click here to access the free resource.

Introduction to Waste and Recycling Presentation/Assembly

This can be run either with the whole school, or a smaller group, and provides an introduction to waste and the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle). Please click here to access.

Waste Audit Lesson Plans

In order to identify what your school throws away and any particular problem areas, a waste audit can be carried out. This involves collecting, sorting and weighing waste from around the school in order to produce an action plan that aims to reduce the waste and improve recycling. Please click here to access.

Recycling Race Lesson Plan

A great introduction to recycling. This session explores the different items that can be recycled at home and involves the children in a hands on ‘sorting race’ to work out which bin different things need to be placed in. Please click here to access.

Help Others to Recycle Lesson Plan

This session looks at the various options for disposing of waste and discusses how recycling is beneficial. The pupils will be encouraged to use a range of information sources to investigate what can and can’t be recycled at home. Please click here to access.

Activity Ideas

We have developed a whole range of curriculum linked activities that provide some great ideas for broadening and enhancing any waste or recycling linked topic. Please click here to access.

Books, both fiction and non-fiction, can provide a great way to introduce a new topic or provide inspiration for project work.

Please click here for information about a range of environmentally themed books.

This child friendly leaflet is designed to help you to find out what you can and can’t put in your home recycling bin. Please click here to access.

The overuse of single-use plastic is an issue that is having a significant impact on our environment. There are some simple changes we can all make to help to tackle this problem. Our ‘single-use swaps’ sheet gives some useful tips for making changes both at home and at school. Please click here to access.