WEE RECYCLERS IS OUR NAME: RECYCLING, REUSING IS OUR GAME

National Network for Child Care's Connections Newsletter

Beth Boeing-Fritz, M.A.
Recycling Education Assistant
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Copyright/Access Information

Recycling is a simple game of matching and sorting. The recycling game is fun to play because the rules are easy to understand and follow. Everyone can play, and in the end, everyone is a winner. Unfortunately, though, we have forgotten how to play the recycling game. Living in a fast-paced, high-tech world of disposables, we have become a "throw-away" society. In other words, our society says "It's O.K., throw it away!" Young children can give us a chance to re-learn the recycling game in order to solve our growing solid waste problem.

National research tells us that young children are at the "best" age to learn basic skills that will influence and shape habits. Habits, such as recycling, are then reinforced over their entire lives. Research says that children as young as age two to three have the cognitive ability to learn about waste reduction and recycling. Yet, few environmental (let alone recycling) programs have been developed for young children.

Early child care and education programs are ideal for teaching children the skills for, and importance of, recycling and reusing. Child care and education programs also generate a good deal of recyclable materials. Discussion and activities about recycling, within and outside the child care program, will have real meaning for children. The skills needed for recycling activities are the same as the developmental skills and knowledge already developed in quality early childhood programs. These skills include classification, matching, sorting, sequencing, critical thinking, environmental awareness, and social responsibility.

In 1991 the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources worked with several Head Start programs and preschools to plan and develop Wee Recyclers, a recycling and waste reduction education program for preschool programs. Supplements for older school-age children have also been developed, with activities suited to children in grades K-12.

The following activities, taken from Wee Recyclers, demonstrate how to introduce recycling to young children. Introduce the term "recycle" to young children. See if they can think of any other words they know that sound like the word "recycle." Explain that recycle means to collect and remake an item into the same thing or into something else. Old newspapers can be used to make new newspapers; old glass jars can be used to make new glass jars, and so on. Introduce the recycling symbol. Explain that when they see this symbol, it means that something can be recycled or that it has been made from recycled material. In order for something to be recycled, however, it needs to be saved and taken to a place called a "recycling center."

Introduce separate containers for various recyclable items: glass, cans, newspapers, cardboard boxes (the exact items that may be recycled may vary from community to community). Discuss which items they use in the child care program that can be saved in these containers to be recycled. A monthly field trip could involve a trip to your community's recycling center. Ask for a tour. Find out where your recycled materials are going next. How will they be processed for reuse?

An activity from one of the supplements for older children, entitled "Is It A Waste?," helps children look at the purpose of packaging. Ask children to bring in an example of food packaging. Discuss why the product needs to be packaged. Is it to protect the product, prevent theft, promote advertising, make the product look larger or more appealing? Discuss whether the packaging is essential or wasteful. Talk about the influences packaging has on how the product is sold. What happens to the packaging once the product is used? Is it recyclable or biodegradable (material that can be broken down naturally)? Which packaging is made from recycled materials or from renewable resources? Which packaging would you label most and least wasteful?

Working in teams, ask children to design packaging for a particular product that is more "environmentally friendly." Invite a local expert on recycling - a staff member from your local recycling center, a faculty member from a community college or university, a Cooperative Extension specialist - to hear your group's ideas. This expert can then respond to issues raised by your group's discussions about packaging.

By teaching awareness of and paying attention to environmental issues in your child care program, you can help increase children's appreciation and skills in caring for our planet.

For more information about the Wee Recyclers curriculum and/or the Supplemental Guides for School-Age Children, contact:

Beth Boeing-Fritz
Recycling Education, IE/6
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 7921
Madison, WI 53707-7921

Other resources on environmental awareness for early childhood professionals are available through:

Redleaf Press
450 N. Syndicate, Suite 5
St. Paul, MN 55104-4125
(800) 423-8309

RESOURCES

Herman, M. L., Passineau, J. F., Schimpf, A. L., & Treuer, P. (1991). *Teaching Kids To Love The Earth*. Duluth, MN: Pfeifer-Hamilton.

McQueen, K., Fassler, D., with the Environmental Law Foundation. (1991). *Let's Talk Trash: The Kid's Book About Recycling*. Burlington, VT: Waterfront Books.

Metzger, M., & Whittaker, C. P. (1991). *This Planet Is Mine: Teaching Environmental Awareness and Appreciation to Children*. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Petrash, C. (1992). *Earthways: Simple Environmental Activities for Young Children*. Mt. Rainier, MD: Gryphon House.