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Unit (Three Lessons):  "Exploring Your Community, Litter, and Recycled Paper"

Title:  Who Lives in Your Neighborhood
Annotation:  In the initial focus for the study of communities, lesson number one in the unit entitled "Exploring Your Community, Litter, and Recycled Paper," individual students will recall the characteristics of their neighborhood as they create a map that shows where they live.
 
Title:  Litterbugs in My Neighborhood
Annotation:  In this lesson, the second lesson in the unit entitled "Exploring Your Community, Litter, and Recycled Paper," students will observe if litter has impacted their neighborhood. In a walking tour around the school neighborhood, students will collect litter. Finally, students will determine if nonpoint source pollution affects plants.
 
Title:  From Trash to Treasures
Annotation:  In this lesson, the third lesson in the unit entitled "Exploring Your Community, Litter, and Recycled Paper," students will recycle paper trash into homemade paper, make comparisons using different types of paper such as rice paper or papyrus, and conclude that recycled paper saves natural resources.
 
Unit (Four Lessons):  "Wait! Before You Throw It Away..."

Title:  Trash Talkin'
Annotation:  In this first lesson in the "Wait! Before You Throw It Away..." unit, students will be introduced to what solid waste is and what happens to garbage after it is thrown in the trashcan. Students will then view a PowerPoint presentation and an Internet site that describe this process and will learn how their city disposes of waste. Finally, the students will make an edible landfill to represent the layers of a landfill and will complete an assessment sheet.
 
Title:  Alternatives to the Garbage Can
Annotation:  In this second lesson of the "Wait! Before You Throw It Away..." unit, students will view a PowerPoint presentation that describes how they can reduce, reuse, recycle, and compost waste items. Students will also enjoy some hands-on learning by sorting through a bag of 'clean' garbage and decide how each item should be disposed of properly. Finally, students will take on the role of a 'Garbage Guru' by polling family members to see how they dispose of unwanted household solid waste.
 
Title:  Nature's Recyclers - The Secrets to Composting
Annotation:  In this third lesson of "Wait! Before You Throw It Away..." unit, students will learn more about composting and will view a PowerPoint slideshow that introduces them to some of nature's recyclers. Students will then go on an outdoor exploration to find some of these creatures and will conduct an experiment using a Berlese funnel.
 
Title:  Making the Most of Compost
Annotation:  In this fourth and final lesson of the "Wait! Before You Throw it Away..." unit, students will review the benefits of composting and the types of materials that should go in a compost bin. The students will view an online slideshow that reviews this information and describes how to set up a school compost bin. Students will then set up a class composting bin and will use the nutrient rich soil to enrich the school flower beds and mulch around trees on campus to aid in their growth. Note: This lesson requires an ongoing activity that will continue throughout the entire school year.