wastematters!

zero-waste activity workbook

Includes composting
how-to’s!

featuring the
zero-waste crew!
Waste Matters: Zero Waste Activity Workbook by Archeworks
All images, characters, and narratives are licensed under
a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0
Unported License.

Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available

at www.archeworks.org.

All curriculum resources, unless otherwise noted, are within

the public domain.
Introduction
Dear Educator,

Welcome to “Waste Matters!” a classroom resource for teaching your

students about waste reduction, recycling, composting, and the
importance of zero waste.

Currently, Americans generate 236 million tons of waste per year. Even
with new recycling and composting programs our waste impact has
everyday environmental and economic consequences. This is why we
have created “Waste Matters,” a curriculum resource full of activities
for your classroom.

These activities are organized for students to acquire knowledge,

information, and skills to assist them in making informed and
responsible decisions toward waste management and its effect on
the people and the planet. Topics and curriculum subjects covered in
each activity are outlined in our table of contents. We have targeted
the 3rd grade level as a median for all activities, providing ideas in the
accompanying instructor pages for simplifying or adding complexity
to suit younger or older learners.

We hope that our activities will enhance your existing curriculum, and
can also be used as stand-alone projects to enhance students’
progress toward achieving zero waste—both at school and at home.

Use less. Reuse more,

Agri-gate Team
Archeworks
April 2011
Contents
LET IT ROT/instructor guidelines 1
LET IT ROT/activity 2
WHAT’S FOR LUNCH?/activity 3
INTRODUCING THE ZERO WASTE GANG/instructor guidelines 4
WASTE IN PLACE/activity 5
WASTE IN PLACE/answer key 6
MEET THE GANG/activity 7
COMPOST LAB/instructor guidelines 14
COMPOST LAB: LANDFILLS/ instructor guidelines 15
BUILD A LANDFILL/activity 16
TRASH LONGEVITY/activity 17
COMPOST LAB: AEROBIC COMPOST/instructor guidelines 18
WHAT IS COMPOSTING?/activity 19
BUILD A TUMBLER/activity 20
FEEDING MINI TUMBLERS/activity 21
COMPOST LAB: COMPARATIVE RESPONSES/activity 22
COMPOST TESTING/instructor guidelines 24
COMPOST TESTING/activity 25
MAKING BOKASHI CULTURE/instructor guidelines 27
WHAT IS BOKASHI?/activity 30
MAKE BOKASHI CULTURE/activity 31
FINISHING BOKASHI CULTURE/activity 32
FEEDING BOKASHI/activity 33
COMPOST LAB: VERMICOMPOST/instructor guidelines 34
FEEDING WORMS/activity 35
WHAT’S ON THE MENU?/activity 36
BUILD A WORM BIN/activity 37
WORM BIN BINGO/instructor guidelines 38
WORM BIN BINGO/activity 39
COMPOST VOCABULARY/instructor guidelines 58
COMPOST VOCABULARY/activity 59
WORD SEARCH/activity 61
WORD SEARCH/answer key 62
WEIRD VEGETABLES/instructor guidelines 63
WEIRD VEGETABLES/activity 64
SCRAPPLE AND THE BEANSTALK/instructor guidelines 71
SCRAPPLE AND THE BEANSTALK/activity 72
GARBAGE PIZZA/activity 73
RECYCLE PAPER/instructor guidelines 75
ZERO WASTE LOG/activity 76
WASTE MANAGEMENT/activity 77
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES 78
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 79
LET IT ROT
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What happens to food that is left out? Why do some
foods decompose faster than others?

OBJECTIVES:
This experiment teaches kids to hypothesize about what will happen, examine
and analyze the results, and test their hypothesis.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposers, bacteria, food, nutrition (if desired)

METHODS:
Experiment and Observation

PROCEDURE:
This experiment can follow the “Weird Vegetables” activity and utilize some of
the leftover food items from that exercise. It would also be good to include
other items that you know will have different biodegrading rates like fast food
french fries, which will likely not show any signs of breaking down.
Students can work in pairs, and ziploc bags with food can be provided to
each pair or an assortment of ziploc bags can be shared by the whole class.
They will hypothesize about how the different foods will break down and use
their journals to record observations.

MATERIALS:
*Assorted food items
*Ziploc bags
*Journals

MODIFICATIONS:
Teachers can provide more information about what causes the food to break
down faster or slower, do litmus tests of foods beforehand, run tests on the
food items with varying conditions - like refrigeration or moisture. Connect
preservatives and food freshness to health and nutrition, if desired.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journals, graphs, sketching

1
 Let it Rot
observing food as it decomposes
Scrapple wants everyone to see how food breaks down!
Some foods take longer than other foods and some foods
have so many preservatives and chemicals that they
barely show any signs of breaking down.

Place each food item in a ziploc bag. In your journal, write

down the date and describe how it looks. Write down what
1 you think will happen to it after one week.

Each day, check to see if there is any mold growing. Make

note of the date that you find mold for each item. After
2 one week, use a magnifying glass to examine the food in
the bags (but do not open them - mold spores could
cause harm). Describe how each item has changed.
Note any mold growth. Is this what you expected? What is
the mold doing?
After two weeks, complete another thorough examination
of your specimens. Which items began to rot the fastest?
3 Why do you think this is? Make a chart of the length of time
each item took to rot.

Some molds can move

around and they’re
called slime molds!

2
 What’s For Lunch?
Compostable food items can be found in any meal.
Below are a few examples. Next time you have lunch or
dinner, circle any that you find below!

crushed
rushed egg
eg shells
are a great source
of calcium for
compost!

3
 INTRODUCING THE ZERO-WASTE GANG
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What items should be recycled and composted?

OBJECTIVES: Students will learn to associate certain waste items with certain
characters, to better sort their waste.

TOPICS COVERED: Respect, Responsibility,

Readiness to learn

METHODS: Identification exercise

PROCEDURE: Hand out the “Waste in Place”

worksheet and character stomach sheets.
The students will cut out the example waste
items on the “Waste in Place” sheet. As they
are cutting, the teacher can read the “Meet
the Gang!” introductions to the group and
each individual character.

As they are read each character’s

biography, students should paste examples of what each character eats
onto the stomach sheets.

Once the students are finished, use the answer key (above) to ensure that
they got the items in the right place. Note that both Scrapple and REE-C like
paper products; Scrapple can take paper with food on it, where REE-C
cannot, and all cafeteria paper should go to Scrapple to aid the schools’
compost system.

MATERIALS: Scissors, glue

MODIFICATIONS: Students could study their own digestive system and compare
their stomachs to the “stomachs” in the cafeteria.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Worksheets

4
 Meet The Gang!
Becoming a zero-waste school is no small task -- sorting garbage,
food scraps, and recycling can be tough. But it’s a challenge that
your school has committed to doing. You can help make sure waste
gets to its proper place, and the Zero Waste Gang will help guide you
along the way! These guys are going to come to your lunchroom
and your classroom to teach you about compostables, recyclables,
liquids, trash, and how to dispose of each. They might show you
some cool experiments too!
Scrapple, the composting apple, is here to rescue her compostable
friends from the landfill. REE-C, the Robotic Environmental Entity from
Chicago, is here to make sure your recyclables can have another life.
Le Che, the retired revolutionary cow, is here to get strong bones by
drinking all of your milk and other liquid leftovers. Garbo, the
overweight landfill monster is here because he needs to go on a diet,
and you can help him by not sending as much waste to the landfill!

REE-C
Scrapple

Garbo

Le Che

5
 Meet Scrapple!
Scrapple is on a mission - scavenging the streets
of Chicago for her fellow organic compostable
friends. She and the rest of the food, paper, and
plant waste hope to one day morph into fertile,
rich soil. Only then can they finally grow and look
the way they used to before they were thrown
out. School lunches have been spotted as having a lot of
discarded compostable food (Scrapple’s friends!)- so she has
begun sneaking into school cafeterias to seek out and rescue the
rest of the organic food before it gets sent to the dark, dreaded
landfill. Searching the vast school lunches requires patience and
strength, luckily Scrapple is hard core!

Meet REE-C!
REE-C used to be a trash compactor, but one
day he saw a crew of bucket drummers and
realized that "One robot's trash is another robot's
treasure!" So, he got himself upgraded to be a
recycling robot, and now eats only plastic, paper, and aluminum.
Then he recycles those things so they can be reused to make
new plastic, paper, and aluminum, which also reduces the
amount of materials people need to get from the Earth.

REE-C heard that your school is trying to reduce, reuse, and

recycle more, so he came by to help out. REE-C still can’t
recycle really thin plastic, like zip-lock bags or peel-off lids, but
one day he’ll get upgraded again and be able to recycle more!

6
Meet Garbo!
Garbo has a problem. He eats EVERYTHING you
give him! He just can’t help it, even if he knows
that something is recyclable or compostable,
he’ll still eat it! He used to be a happy
monster, but he’s gotten sick from eating all
the food he’s not supposed to eat. Plus, all the
compostables start to rot in his stomach and give him really
bad gas... If he goes on a diet, he’ll feel much better!

Garbo wants more schools to start sorting your waste even more,
so that he won’t have to eat food, paper, plastic, or aluminum,
and he thinks it’s just the thing he needs to be healthier... and to
smell better. Will your school help?

Meet Le Che!
Le Che the cow is a retired revolutionary cow who now resides
on a local organic farm, where he likes to watch Moo-vies and
play the cowbell in his friends’ drum circle. He is so old that all of
his teeth have fallen out! That means
he can only eat liquids, but that’s okay,
because he needs milk to have strong
bones!

He knows that some schools have to

throw away some of their leftover
liquids, so he comes by every day at
lunch to drink them up! Not only will he keep his strong bones,
but each school will be able to recycle better without those
pesky liquids in the way!

7
 Waste in Place
Cut out the sample items and paste them onto your Scrapple,
REE-C, Le Che and Garbo Stomachs as your learn about each
character!

8
Waste in Place
Answer Key:
S=Scrapple, R=REE-C, L=Le Che, G=Garbo

S R S S G
R S S R S
S L G S L
S G S S G
R L G R RS
G S S S L
9
 Le Che’S Stomach
As you learn about Le Che, paste some examples from
the “Waste in Place” worksheet of what Le Che likes to
eat!

10
 REE-C’S Stomach
As you learn about REE-C, paste some examples from the
“Waste in Place” worksheet of what REE-C likes to eat!

11
 Scrapple’S Stomach
As you learn about Scrapple, paste some examples from
the “Waste in Place” worksheet of what Scrapple likes to
eat!

12
 Garbo’S Stomach
As you learn about Garbo, paste some examples from
the “Waste in Place” worksheet of what Garbo likes to
eat!

13
 COMPOST LAB
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is compost?

OBJECTIVES:
Students have the opportunity to interact with and compare various decomposing
processes.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposition; critical analysis; ecology; biodiversity

METHODS:
Hands-on interaction; Identification exercises; journaling

PROCEDURE:
This lab is broken into four smaller activities, which can be done independently or
concurrently. The four activities are: creating a miniature landfill environment,
operating an aerobic composting device, operating a vermicompost system, and
operating a Bokashi composting system. Each activity has its own set of instructions.

Also included are response questions; the first sheet of questions targets a
comparison between landfills and composting, and is designed for use after the
landfill activity and at least one composting activity have been run. The second
sheet examines the differences between methods of composting, and is designed
for use after two or more of the compost activities have been completed.

MATERIALS:
Students will need a journal to record changes in each of the systems. An option for
this is for them to create their own from scrap paper, detailed in the “Zero Waste
Log” activity.

MODIFICATIONS:
Each experiment can be run from provided class-wide units, or smaller student
groups can construct their own. Instructional handouts are included with each
activity (except where otherwise noted).

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING:
Journals, worksheets, presentation opportunities

14
COMPOST LAB: LANDFILLS
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is a landfill, and what does it do?

OBJECTIVES:
Students have the opportunity to observe a miniature landfill environment to learn
about the decomposition processes. Students will also learn about the rates of
decomposition, or longevity, of several common items of trash.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposition, trash longevity

METHODS:
Hands-on interaction; Identification exercises; journaling

PROCEDURE:
This activity deals with landfills and their processes. Included are a how-to handout
explaining how to make a simple mini-landfill, as well as a worksheet dealing with
trash longevity. During the activity, it is important to explain that landfills lengthen
the amount of time it takes for an item to decompose, because the conditions do
not facilitate fast decomposition. Furthermore, the decomposers that do thrive
tend to produce harmful gases such as ammonia and methane.
The worksheet includes an identification activity; students are asked to guess the
longevity of example items, and then to get into groups and compare guesses.
Then, they can be read the following or find the answers online:
Aluminum Can: 200-500 years; Banana: 3-4 weeks; cigarette butt: 2-5 years; cotton
rag: 5 months; glass bottle: unknown: may never decompose in a landfill; leather
boot: 40-50 years; paper bag: 1 month; plastic 6-pack rings: 450 years; plastic jug: 1
million years; rubber sole of boot: 50-80; Styrofoam cup: unknown: may never
decompose in a landfill; tin can: 80-100 years; wool sock: 1 year

MATERIALS:
The mini-landfills need 2-liter bottles, duct tape, various items of waste (for compari-
son to composting systems, include several examples of organic waste), and soil

MODIFICATIONS:
Students could form groups and vary the conditions in their landfills, such as allowing
sunlight or using drier materials.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journals, worksheet

15
 Build A Landfill
1 First, remove the top portion of a plastic 2-liter
bottle

Next, take some garbage and fill it up about half-

2 way. Make sure you get a variety of items, includ-
ing food and paper.

Then, add a layer of dirt—real landfills do this to

3 keep the smells down and the mice out.

Close it all up, using some duct tape

4 to put the top back on, and let it sit
for a few weeks. Make sure it is kept
out of sunlight—the sun doesn’t go
through dirt, right?
Every day, take a look at what
5 the “landfill” is doing. Is there
any kind of mold or fungus
growing in
there? Do
things look the
same as when
they went in?
Record your
observations
Chicago has only
in a log or about 8 years of
journal. landfill space at
the current rate

16
 Trash Longevity
How Long Does Garbage last?
Trash Longevity is the length of time it takes for an item of trash
to fully decompose in nature or a landfill. How long do you
think the following items last?

Longevity What the

Your Guess Example Group Guess Ranking Garbologists
-
(1 13) say
Aluminum Can
Banana
Cigarette Butt
Cotton Rag
Glass Bottle
Leather Boot
Paper Bag
Plastic 6-pack Rings
Plastic Jug
Rubber Sole of Boot
Styrofoam Cup
Tin Can
Wool Sock

Why is it important to reduce the amount of waste sent to

1 landfills?

2 What are some specific ways to reduce those amounts?

Every year, Americans

throw away enough paper
cups to wrap around the
world 760 times if stacked
end to end!

17
 COMPOST LAB: AEROBIC COMPOST
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is composting, and what does it do?

OBJECTIVES:
Students have the opportunity to observe an aerobic compost device, and learn
what items can be composted.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposition, microorganisms, biodiversity, ecology, chemistry

METHODS:
Hands-on interaction; Identification exercises; journaling

PROCEDURE:
First, hand out the “What is Compost?” worksheet and have students
complete it. This will give them a primer for how to feed the compost tumblers.
Then, they can either make their own or use the classroom tumblers. Have the
students measure out 2 parts “browns” to one part “greens” (by volume) and load
into the mini-tumblers. Students should record visual changes, as well as
temperature changes and pH, throughout the process. After the compost looks
more or less ready (i.e. like soil), empty the tumblers and let the students explore
tactilely and record their observations.

MATERIALS:
Two mini-tumblers are available; more will require plastic 2-liters, tape, scissors, and
organic waste (primarily paper or dry leaves/grass, but also food/fresh grass).

MODIFICATIONS:
Students could form groups and vary the conditions in their composters, such as
more greens, smaller pieces, placing the tumblers outside.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journals, worksheet, graphing

Answers to the ‘what is compostable’ chart: Apple cores, yes, greens; Cell phones, no; socks, yes (as long as they’re
cotton—they’ll just take longer), browns; hamburger patty, yes (but only with some systems), greens; glass bottles, no;
plastic bags, no (although some plastics can be composted as browns); pencil shavings, yes, browns; nickels, no; dollar
bills, yes, browns.

18
What is Composting?
Composting is the process of cultivating decomposers in order to
turn organic waste into humus, a soil-like natural fertilizer that
provides plants with nutrients and encourages a thriving soil
ecosystem.
What can you compost?
Things can be composted if they are “organic,” meaning if it
came from something that was alive. Compostables are divided
into two categories: “Greens” and “Browns.” Greens are high in
Nitrogen, and are usually wet and juicy. Most food and fresh
grass/leaves are Greens. Browns are high in Carbon, and include
things like wood, dried-out grass/leaves, and paper.

Item Can it Compost? Is it Brown or Green?

Apple Cores
Cell Phones
Socks
Hamburger patty
Glass bottles
Plastic bags
Pencil shavings
Nickels
Dollar bills

1 Were you surprised about some of the examples?

2 Pick one example and explain why you think it can or

can’t be composted.

The aerobic
decomposers in
compost piles can heat
the pile to 160 degrees
Fahrenheit!

19
 Build a Tumbler!
First, cut the top off of a 2-liter bottle and poke 10-20
1 holes in the side

Once it's filled (see “Feeding your Tumbler”) reattach

2 the top and duct tape it together.

Finally, set it on some newspaper or on an aluminum

3 pan to catch drippage. Make sure it gets to sit in
sunlight.

Optional: Elevate it with a stand, or research

4 commercial tumblers and make a rotational
mechanism.

Approximately one
fourth of waste
that is sent to
landfills is
compostable

20
 Feeding
MINI-TumblerS
1 FIll your mini-tumber to about 2/3 to 3/4 full.

One third of that amount will be greens: food,

2 wet grass/leaves. The other two thirds will be
browns: shredded paper, pencil shavings, dry
leaves/grass, sawdust or wood shavings.

You want your compost to be moist, but not

3 over-wet. You can make it more dry by adding
some dry browns, or you can add some wet
greens to make it more moist.

Your compost will need to be turned daily. To

4 turn, gently rotate your tumbler several times.

As your compost is working, record any visual

5 changes you see. Has anything started to grow
in it? Do the materials that went in look different
now? You can also record the temperature. It
should be a little warmer than room temp (77ºF),
at the very least, but no warmer than 170ºF.

Did you know? You

can even compost
hair!

21
 Compost Lab
Comparative Responses
Part 1: Comparing landfills to compost

After you've experimented with a mini-landfill and with at least

one method of composting, answer the following questions:

What is one major difference between landfills

1 and composting?

2 Why is composting more beneficial than landfills?

What is one drawback to composting, and how

3 could that drawback be addressed?

Alaska has over 300

landfills, more than
double the entire
Northeastern US!

22
 Compost Lab
Comparative Responses
Part 2: Comparing various compost methods
After you've experimented with two or more methods of compost,
answer the following questions:

1
What is the finished compost like for each method? How does
it look and smell?

How did the speed of one method compare with the speed
2 of the other method(s)? Keep the amounts composted in
mind.

3 Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages

of each method.

4 Would you like to compost at home? How would you do it?

Earthworms can eat

up to half their
body weight every
day!

23
 COMPOST TESTING
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
What are the different qualities and properties of different compost
conditions? How do we evaluate ‘good’ compost?

OBJECTIVES:
After this lesson, students will understand the different environmental
qualities affecting compost properties.

TOPICS COVERED:
chemistry, analytical skills

PROCEDURE:
Hand out the Compost Gradients and Compost Testing worksheets (students
may share the Gradients handout). Then take your students out to the
courtyard and allow them to examine various tumblers. The worksheet asks
them to take temperature, which should be done from the middle of the pile
within the tumbler, as well as pH, which will be easiest with an electronic
probe. Then, the students are instructed to estimate the green-brown
balance; this estimate will largely be inferred in later-stage tumblers. Lastly, if
the tumbler smells like it’s rotting, as opposed to composting, the students
are asked to estimate a probable cause for that. It may be necessary to add
browns and turn the tumbler a few times around.

MATERIALS:
Thermometer, electronic pH probe

MODIFICATIONS:
Simplify by introducing the activity to evaluate all the different sensory
properties of compost: feel, visual description (sketching, journal notes),
smell, ect. Have students make regular observations and graph the results.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journals, graphs, sketching.

24
 Compost Testing
Composting Gradients activity
Use the Composting Gradients Sheet on the proceeding
page to analyze your compost.

Take the temperature of the soil. Record your

1 findings.

Take the pH of the soil with a pH tester and

2 record your data on the Gradient Sheet.

Observe your browns and greens in your compost.

3 Do you have too much nitrogen or too
much carbon?

Does your compost smell like it’s rotting? If so, estimate

4 why that is, based on your measurements.

25
 Composting gradients
Ways to figure out what’s gone wrong
Ideally, we want a good balance to quickly, aerobically break down waste

o2 o2
Anaerobic oxygen
Aerobic
(smelly)

Too wet moisture Too dry

(smelly) (cool, slow)

greens / browns
Too much
nitrogen
(smelly) Too much
carbon
(cool, slow)

p H
< 5.5 6.5 -7.0 > 8.0
(slow) (slow)

,
Temperature
(ambient)

Cold, Hot,
slower faster
courtesy of Professor Pete Leki of Waters Elementary, Chicago, IL

26
MAKING BOKASHI CULTURE
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How do we create an ideal environment for the

cultivation of efficient microorganisms (EM) that wil aid in the breakdown of
food waste?

OBJECTIVES:
After this lesson, students will have a better understanding of microorganisms
that work in an anaerobic state to break down waste. With Bokashi, a healthy
balance of microbes go into the soil with the fermented scraps, re-establishing
the high microbial counts present in healthy soil.(1) Students can learn about
the environmental benefits of waste reduction and the benefits of improving
soil.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposers, bacteria, microorganisms

METHODS:
Hands-on activity with teacher guidance

ABOUT:
Bokashi is a method of breaking down organic waste by using anaerobic
organisms to first pickle the waste, changing the cellular structure of it, and
then burying the pickled material below 6-8 inches of soil (outdoors or in bins),
which is quickly broken down to produce a rich soil amendment or compost.

The anaerobic microorganisms are essentially stored in a host, or inoculant. To

prepare the inoculant, a brew that will attract the appropriate bacterial
strains is prepared, the host material is immersed in it, and the microbes are
allowed to ferment. Molasses provides an energy source for the microbes
which reproduce wildly for several days. Once the fermentation stage is over,
the inoculated host can be dried, packaged, and stored for up to 2 years.

27
 <CONTINUED>

The bacteria belong primarily to three strains: yeasts, (Saccharomyces spp.),

bacteria that produce lactic acids (Lactobacillus spp.), and (phototrophic)
purple non-sulfur bacteria (Rhodopseudomonas spp.). These, or bacteria like
them, are the active organisms in yogurt and in silage, the fermented hay that
is produced all over the world as a livestock feed. All smell sour or fermented
but none produce a smell nearly as foul as those associated with natural
anaerobic processes.(1)

With the finished product from this exercise, the students can maintain the
classroom bokashi bin. The rules for bokashi are very simple. You can add any
food waste that is not moldy (including dairy and meat), but you should not
add liquids or paper. You sprinkle a layer of bokashi inoculant over every 3”
thick layer of food waste, press it down, and seal the container. Specific
directions for regular maintainance will be included with the bins.

DIRECTIONS:

Recipe for 10 Pounds of Bokashi

* 4T - 60 ml EM-1 or equivalent microbes (1 T)
* 4T - 60 ml Molasses (1 T)
* 10 cups - 2.5 liters water - no chlorine residues (2.5 c)
* 10 lbs - 4.5 kg bran (2.5 lbs)

Recipe for 2.5 lbs

* 1 T EM
* 1 T Molasses
* 2.5 cups water
* 2.5 lbs wheat bran

Dissolve the molasses in the water. Add the EM microbes. Put the bran in a
container big enough to hold it. Add the liquid and stir it up well with your
hands. The mixture should be damp enough to hold together when you
squeeze it into a ball but not so wet liquid is dripping from it. Adjust the
moisture by adding either a bit more liquid or more bran.

28
<CONTINUED>

Put the damp bran into an airtight container - pairs of students can use ziploc
bags. Squeeze out all the air and fasten the top securely. Let it sit in a warm
place out of the way for a minimum of two weeks. It's okay to leave it longer.

There may be some white mold on the fermented bran at the end of the two
weeks. This is good. If however the mold is black or green it means either some
air got in or the material was too wet, and the experiment went awry - toss it
out.

For storing long term, dry the bran well on a tarp in a warm, dry place for 2-3
days. Ten pounds of bokashi would last the average family 6-10 months.
Properly dried it can be stored for several years. Store in an airtight container
out of direct light.

MATERIALS:
* EM (provided)
* Molasses (provided)
* Water - no chloride residue (tap water left out 24 hours)
* Wheat bran (provided)

MODIFICATIONS:
To simplify, the teacher can pre-mix the water, molasses, and EM, and have
the students mix the wet and dry ingredients. To add complexity, talk about
aerobic and anaerobic conditions, include microscopic analyses, include
mathmatic principals for ratios, intentionally sabatoge the experiment and
analyze what happened.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: After Bokashi solution begins

pickeling the compost, oberservations can be made at intervals to record
changes and rates of decomposition, odors, termperature, ect.

29
 What is Bokashi?
Bokashi is a Japanese composting process that relies on anaerobic
digesters in a two-stage process. The first stage uses Effective
Microorganisms, or EM, to “pickle” food waste. You may be familiar with
pickled cucumbers—or simply pickles. They aren't quite cucumbers
anymore, but they're still recognizable. That's kind of what the first step is,
except you can't eat it.

The second stage is the real composting. The benefit of the first stage is
that the second stage goes very quickly: soil with Bokashi is ready to plant
in 2 - 3 weeks! That basically gives the soil time to neutralize the acidity, so
there are still a few pieces of things, but they'll get broken down in a few
more weeks.

Bokashi can decompose any food, and even bones (though they take
longer). Meat, cheese, banana peels, orange peels, all the things that are
harder to decompose in other systems can go into Bokashi. However,
other things, like paper or wood take a long time to break down in Bokashi.

An anaerobic organism does not use oxygen. What kind of

1 environment would such an organism thrive in?

The EM used in the first stage of Bokashi are microorganisms.

2 What is the difference between micro- and macroorganisms?
When do you think macroorganisms become part of the
bokashi-to-soil process?

Do you think worms would like the pickled Bokashi mix? Why
3 or why not?

Bokashi Effective
Microorganisms include
a variety found in milk
and rice!

30
 Make Bokashi Culture
Microorganisms make up the largest number of living organisms on the
planet. Luckily for us, they’re tiny! They’re so small you need a
microscope to see them. There are not millions, or billions, or trillions of
them -- there are trillions of trillions of trillions of microbes on Earth, and
probably more that scientists haven’t even discovered yet!

There are good microbes and bad microbes. Some of the good ones
can even eat your garbage! Today we are going to grow a colony of
good microorganisms that will help break down our food waste.

Materials:
* 2.5 cups warm water
* 1 T molasses
* 1 T EM - effecient microorganisms
* 2.5 lbs wheat bran

Mix the molasses and the water first. Then add the EM, stir it all
1 up and addit to your wheat bran. Mix it all together so that
there’s no dry wheat bran.

Put your mixture into a ziploc bag (use more than one if
2 necessary). Make sure you squeeze all the air out of the bag.

Seal the bags, place them in a dark container and let the
microbes feast away. We’ll check back in on them in about 3
3 weeks.

there are bacteria living in

every cow’s stomach that
helps them break down
plant cellulose, so they
can eat grass!

31
 finishing
bokashi culture
Remember that bag of Bokashi culture that you stashed in a
closet 3 - 4 weeks ago? Time to finish it! We want to be able to
use this for a long time so we have to make sure it’s dried out.

Find your bag of Bokashi culture. What does

1 it look like? Is there mold? If so, what color is
it?
If your mold is white, the experiment worked!
2 The bag should smell sour - like vinegar. If
your mold is black, blue, or smells really gross,
it didn’t work -- moisture must have gotten in.

Take all the bags that were successful (white

3 mold, not too stinky), and empty the
contents onto a tarp.

Break up any clumps. Let the wheat bran

4 dry for a couple of days - just make sure that
all of it is completely dry.

Once it’s dry, you’re ready to use it. Store all

5 the Bokashi culture in an airtight, plastic
container.

Bokashi culture can

Be used in a cat’s
litter box to get rid
of stinky poo smells!

32
 Feeding Bokashi
Bokashi is a simple way to compost food, using anaerobic
bacteria to pickle the food waste, which breaks down very
quickly after it is buried below a thick layer of soil or added to a
compost tumbler.

Sprinkle a layer of Bokashi culture onto the

1 drip tray.
Add your food waste and a layer of Bokashi
culture between every three inches of food
2 waste (can include meat and dairy).
Press down the food scraps with the
provided plate or newspapers, close the
3 container. Repeat steps 1-3 until the
container is full.
Be sure to drain your Bokashi juice once or
4 twice a week. You can pour it down your
drains to keep them clean, or dilute it with
water (1:100) and feed it to plants.
When the container is full, sprinkle the last
layer of Bokashi culture, close the container,
5 and let it sit for 2 weeks. Then bury the
resulting pickled food below 6-8” of soil
(outside or in a container). In 2-3 weeks, the
soil should be ready for planting.

Pickled Bokashi
scraps can also be
added to your
compost tumler.

33
 COMPOST LAB: VERMICOMPOST
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What is vermicomposting, and how does it work?

OBJECTIVES:
Students have the opportunity to observe a vermicompost device, and learn how
to cultivate a beneficial organism.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposition, macroorganisms, biodiversity, ecology

METHODS:
Hands-on interaction; identification exercises; journaling

PROCEDURE:
Begin by explaining what vermicompost is: the cultivation of earthworms for
the harvesting of worm castings as a soil amendment. Explain that the
castings are the worms’ excrement, and it is a form of compost that creates
healthier, more nutritious soil. Explain that some food products are harmful to
them (like citrus peels and salty food) and some take them a long time to eat
(like banana peels).

Activities include instructional sheets for building a vermicompost device,

maintaining it, and for feeding the worms. The activity “What’s on the
Menu?” provides a method for the students to learn which foods to give to
the worms, and serve as a handy reminder. Students should document the
rate of ingestion of different foods as well as maintaining good moisture
levels. It’s important that the bin stays warm, but does not get hot (between
50 - 80 degrees.

MATERIALS:
Four worm bins are provided; more will require stackable plastic containers,
shredded paper, and worms (which can be harvested from another bin)

MODIFICATIONS:
Students can try feeding different foods, or chopping up food first. Be
forewarned, food that sits around for a while, like banana peels, will attract
fruit flies.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journals, graphing

34
 What’s on the Menu?
Making a Worm Menu
Worms are pretty picky for decomposers. Help out your
worms by knowing what to feed them, and make a menu
to use as a guide that you can keep with your worm bin!

Fold a piece of paper (see “Recycle Paper!”

1 to make your own!) in half. Write the name of
your worm “Restauraunt” on the front cover.
Add some decorations, too.
On the inside, draw food corresponding to
2 the below examples, or paste clippings from
magazines or newspapers.
On the back cover, put the “NO TIP” list: The
3 worms don’t like these foods, and in some
cases it’s bad for them.
Yum! (Foods worms love) Eww! (Foods worms hate)
Broccoli Meat
Tomatoes Bread
Lettuce Banana peels (attracts flies)
Squash Potatoes
Peas Orange peels
Pickles Rotting food
Beans Peanuts
Cabbage Other tough or salty foods
Other Soft Vegetables
Each pound of worms
is about 1000
individual worms!

35
 Feeding Worms
Every time you feed your worms, put down a thin (1” or 2”
1 or so) layer of bedding over the food scraps. Only once or
twice a week, feed worms vegetable scraps like lettuce
(refer to your Worm Menu). Avoid feeding the worms fruit,
which attract fruit flies.

As the first bin (with holes) fills up, the second bin (with
2 holes) can be placed on top---the worms will crawl up
through the holes. Then put the fresh food/bedding layer
in the new top bin.

When the second bin is

3 almost full, it’s time to
empty the bottom bin:
sift through the rich
castings, and any large
pieces could be put
back in the top bin or a
regular compost pile.
Repeat step number 2,
exchaging the first and
second bins.

Now you have worm castings. If they are still a bit wet and
4 slimy, allow them to dry in the sun. These castings are used
just like regular compost!

Worms come to the

surface when it rains to
find a mate, because it’s
easier for them to move
around.

36
 Build A Worm Bin!
First, get three stackable plastic containers. They
1 don’t have to be very deep [about 6”], but they
do need to be wide.

Punch about 10 or so 1/4” holes in the bottom of

2 two and in one lid.

Then take some moist shredded paper and put a

3 2” layer in the bottom of one bin with holes; place
that bin in the one without holes, as below:

Next, add about one

4 pound of worms per
square foot of surface
area.

The lid should be kept

5 on the bin in between
feedings, and the
worms need to be out
of direct sunlight.

The most common

worm for
vermicompost is
called the Red
Wiggler

37
 WORM BIN BINGO
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES
ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What organisms are in the bin breaking down waste?

OBJECTIVES:
After this lesson, students will be able to identify a number of decomposers
that work with the worms to break down food waste.

TOPICS COVERED:
Decomposers, bacteria, insects

METHODS:
Exploratory Investigation, Student Discussion

PROCEDURE:
Teacher Led
Guided Practice

MATERIALS:
Fresh, “living” worm compost
Laminated bingo sheets
Pennies, beans, or other small items to mark bingo cards
Tweezers, hand lenses, and/or sticks to explore worm compost

HOW TO PLAY:
Pass out bingo cards to each child or pair of children. Place one large scoop of worm bin
contents on a piece of newspaper and place on a table or the ground for a pair or small
group of children to explore. Have children explore the worm bin contents and critters and
fill in their bingo cards. Switch cards and continue playing.

MODIFICATIONS:
To make this activity more challenging, add a quiz about decomposers and scavengers
(http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/quiz11.htm, for example). Discuss the roles of the
different organisms that are at work in the compost bin, including microscopic bacteria.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING:
If microscopes are available, the exploration can include microscopic organisms.
Students can journal about what they saw and learned.

38
 Worm Bin Bingo

Centipede EarWig Spider

Red Worms Slug Sow Bug

Mites Snail Larvae

39
 Worm Bin Bingo

<BINGO CARDS---
20 TOTAL:
Centipede p. 52-73> Spider
EarWig

Red Worms Slug Sow Bug

Mites Snail Larvae

40
 Worm Bin Bingo

Sow Bug Fruit Fly Red Worms

Earwig Potworms Millipede

Mold Worm Cocoon Snail

41
 Worm Bin Bingo

Millipede
Slug Fungus
Ant FlyMold
Larvae

Red
Potworms
Worms Worm
Fungus
Cocoon Spider

Fungus
MoldGnat Worm
Red Worms
Cocoon Millipede
Snail

42
 Worm Bin Bingo

Millipede
Slug Centipede
Fungus Worm
Mold
Cocoon

Potworms Worm
Rove Cocoon
Beetle FlySpider
Larvae

Fungus
Fungus Gnat Fungus
Red Worms
Gnat RedSnail
Worms

43
 Worm Bin Bingo

Millipede
Snail Fungus
Mold Mold
Mites
Mold

Spider
Potworms Worm
FruitCocoon
Fly RedpWorms
Spider

Fungus Gnat
Springtail RedAnt
Worms Earwig
Snail

44
 Worm Bin Bingo

Potworms Springtail Red Worms

Sow Bug Centipede Earwig

Slug Fungus Fungus Gnat

45
 Worm Bin Bingo

Fruit Fly Mites Snail

Red Worms Millipede Worm Cocoon

Ant Sow Bug Spider

46
 Worm Bin Bingo

Red Worms Rove Beetle Slug

Millipede Fly Larvae Mold

Fungus Gnat Potworms Earwig

47
 Worm Bin Bingo

Fungus Red Worms Ant

Snail Mites Springtail

Worm Cocoon Rove Beetle Mold

48
 Worm Bin Bingo

Centipede Fly Larvae Fruit Fly

Potworms Sow Bug Spider

Rove Beetle Millipede Red Worms

49
 Worm Bin Bingo

Worm Cocoon Springtail Potworms

Rove Beetle Mold Red Worms

Fungus Gnat Fruit Fly Ant

50
 Worm Bin Bingo

Mites Springtail Red Worms

Fungus Gnat Snail Ant

Sow Bug Fungus Fruit Fly

51
 Worm Bin Bingo

Millipede Fungus Mold

Potworms Worm Cocoon Spider

Fungus Gnat Red Worms Snail

52
 Worm Bin Bingo

Worm
Millipede
Cocoon Fungus
Ant Mold
Snail

Larvae
Potworms Worm
Springtail
Cocoon Fungus
Spider

Red Worms
Fungus Gnat RedMold
Worms Fruit
Snail
Fly

53
 Worm Bin Bingo

Fungus Gnat Sow Bug Millipede

Potworms Red Worms Rove Beetle

Earwig Spider Mites

54
 Worm Bin Bingo

Red Worms Fungus Gnat Mold

Sow Bug Ant Centipede

Slug Rove Beetle Fungus

55
 Worm Bin Bingo

Slug Fruit Fly Millipede

Red Worms Earwig Mites

Larvae Springtail Centipede

56
 Worm Bin Bingo

Worm Cocoon Red Worms Centipede

Spider Snail Fungus Gnat

Potworms Mites Rove Beetle

57
 COMPOST VOCABULARY
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: What are some compost-related terms?

OBJECTIVES:
Students will learn compost terminology and relate those terms to their own
experiences.

TOPICS COVERED:
Ecology, general science

METHODS:
Identification

PROCEDURE:
The three pages of compost vocabulary are structured in a way that presents
the terms and then prompts the student to relate each one to their own
experience. A word search is also as a reinforcing exercise.

MATERIALS:
Worksheets (provided)

MODIFICATIONS:
Students could be asked to describe compost using the vocabulary words.

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: worksheets

58
 Compost
Vocabulary
DECOMPOSERS--Organisms that break down food, plants,
1 wood, or paper. Eventually, it gets turned into compost and
soil.

? What’s an example of a decomposer at work?

__________________________________________

MICROORGANISMS--Organisms that are too small to see

2 without a microscope, such as bacteria and fungus (well,
you can see a bunch of bacteria or fungus together, but it’s
like looking at a big crowd of people from an airplane--you
can’t see any one person). Organisms that can be seen
without a microscope are called Macroscopic.
Give an example of a macroscopic organism
? and a microscopic organism.

_________________________________________

3
COMPOST--A soil-like material (it looks like dirt!) that can be
added to soil to increase its nutrient value and health; it can
also be used directly to plant in, just like soil. Plants get their
“food” from the soil, so compost is like a multivitamin that
isn’t made from expensive chemicals like regular fertilizer.

?
What could you use compost for at home?

________________________________________

It takes the same

energy to make 20
Recycled aluminum
cans as It Does to
make one new can!

59
 Compost
Vocabulary
AEROBIC--Means “requiring air.” For compost, this means
4 that the decomposers that make compost need oxygen to
breathe. There are other decomposers, though, that don’t
breathe air, these are called ANAEROBIC. Some anaerobic
decomposers release unpleasant gases, like methane.
Rotting food smells pretty bad, so what kind of
? decomposers are probably at work?

__________________________________________

5
LANDFILL--A place where garbage gets dumped and then
buried. The compaction of materials creates an anaerobic
environment which releases methane and other gases. It
takes years to break down the organic materials, and some
things, like Styrofoam, never get broken down!
What’s one way to keep waste out of the landfills?
? __________________________________________

TURNING--Turning compost is the process of adding air so the

6 aerobic decomposers get oxygen. This can be done with a
pitchfork in a large pile, or it can be done inside a compost
tumbler, which is designed to make turning easier.

?
What’s something else that needs air to function?

__________________________________________

Sunlight, not organisms,

decomposes plastic;
that’s why it takes
hundreds of years!

60
 Compost
Vocabulary
VERMICOMPOSTING--The process of cultivating earthworms
7 and using their castings, or excrement, as compost. The most
common worms used are called Red Wigglers. Vermi- is a
Latin root meaning “worm”.

? worm
What do you think would be important to have in a
bin?
__________________________________________

BOKASHI--A Japanese method of composting food scraps

8 that takes two steps: first, anaerobic (but not the rotting-food
kind) microorganisms change the structure of the food
scraps, then it all gets added to soil where more digesters
eat the scraps really quickly. Bokashi can’t compost things
like paper, but it can take eggshells and bones!
What are some parts of foods that you don’t eat?
? __________________________________________

LEACHATE--Leachate is any liquid runoff that passes through

9 material and carries solids or components from that material.
It can be from the composting process, in which case it can
be diluted and used as a soil additive. More often, it is
refered to in the context of landfills and is highly toxic!
Can you think of something people throw away that
could be toxic?
?
It takes over 634
gallons of water to
make a single
hamburger!

61
 Word Search
Hidden in the puzzle below are words associated with
composting. See how many you can find!
M D A H U L P J Y X T E Q B I

Q J Z M D M Y M R S O D Q Y B

Y L D V C I D P O R I L A L O

L E S E E C F P C V S E U W C

A D D W C R M U G R Z A E N C

N H G J C O M S E J Z C M E A

D B O V C O M I D Z F H F O S

F O C R P R X P C V P A B J T

I K T Y L G P W O O G T J J I

L A U I C A Z H A S M E M E N

L S R U Z N J M U K E P K H G

Y H N H N I Z A P V N R O S P

M I I N G S V X D C S G S S O

X C N Q J M B H V W O A Y M T

L L G C P S D A E R O B I C F

DECOMPOSERS VERMICOMPOST
MICROORGANISMS BOKASHI
COMPOST LEACHATE
AEROBIC LANDFILL
TURNING CASTING

Every hour, Americans

throw away 2.5 million
plastic bottles!

62
 Word Search
Hidden in the puzzle below are words associated with
composting. See how many you can find!
M D A H U L P J Y X T E Q B I

Q J Z M D M Y M R S O D Q Y B

Y L D V C I D P O R I L A L O

L E S E E C F P C V S E U W C

A D D W C R M U G R Z A E N C

N H G J C O M S E J Z C M E A

D B O V C O M I D Z F H F O S

F O C R P R X P C V P A B J T

I K T Y L G P W O O G T J J I

L A U I C A Z H A S M E M E N

L S R U Z N J M U K E P K H G

Y H N H N I Z A P V N R O S P

M I I N G S V X D C S G S S O

X C N Q J M B H V W O A Y M T

L L G C P S D A E R O B I C F

DECOMPOSERS VERMICOMPOST
MICROORGANISMS BOKASHI
COMPOST LEACHATE
AEROBIC LANDFILL
TURNING CASTING

63
 WEIRD VEGETABLES
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES
ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
Teach kids about vegetables and nutrients as they relate to colors.

OBJECTIVES:
Students will learn about vegetables that many of them may never have seen before
and learn the importance of eating a variety of colors through fruits and vegetables.

TOPICS COVERED:
Nutrition, phytochemicals in plants

METHODS:
Sensory experience; Identification exercises; journaling

PROCEDURE:
This activity is based on Jamie Oliver’s “Food Revolution” where he discovered that
while most first graders can identify a chicken nugget or french fry, many have
trouble figuring out what a potato or a tomato is - endemic to our nation’s health
challenges. Bring a few vegetables for the kids, whole / raw or cooked. Try to pick
vegetables (and/or fruits) that kids might enjoy (sweet potatoes, avocado, jicama,
blackberries, beets, ec.) and pick one from each color group: red, orange, yellow,
green, purple, and white. Have them guess what it is and use their journals to make
observations using all senses, including taste. Ask if they have any allergies before
having them taste the foods. The leftover food can be used for the “Let it Rot”
activity. The follow-up to sensory experience involves the “Eating Colors” worksheet.
They can try to identify the fruits and vegetables on the sheet, take it home, quiz their
parents, and use it as a “passport” where they mark it off if they eat it at home.

MATERIALS:
Assorted fruits and vegetables (cooked and whole / raw) and Eating Colors
Worksheet (provided)

MODIFICATIONS:
Students could research the phytochemicals that create the different colors in the
plants, create a journal about the different fruits and vegetable that they like and
look for patterns (i.e. preference for orange plants).

ASSESSMENT / OBSERVATION / REPORTING:

Journals, observation, worksheet

64
 Weird Vegetables
Nutrients and colors
The Zero Waste crew wants to help you eat healthy foods.
First they’re going to quiz you on some strange foods and
then we’ll talk about the color of each food. The different
colors in plants are caused by phytochemicals, and each
one does something special for your body’s health.

Guess the name of each of the

1 vegetables that your teacher has
provided.
Use your journal to describe the
qualities of each vegetable. How

2
does it feel? What does it smell like?
What does it look like? What does it
taste like? Do you like it? Have you had
it before?
With your “Eating Colors” worksheet, try to name as

3 many of the fruits and vegetables as you can. Circle

the ones that you’ve eaten before. Take it home to
see if your family has any of the items in your kitchen.
See if your parents or family can name all of the items
on the worksheet.

There are more than

12,000 phytochemicals in
nature. Eating colorful
fruits and veggies helps
you stay healthy.

65
 Eating green

Green foods have SULFORAPHANE and INDOLES, which:

*are good for the circulatory system
*have lots of vitamin B and minerals
*help with vision, strong bones and teeth, and cancer prevention

66
 Eating orange

Orange foods have CAROTENOIDS, which:

*help repair DNA, prevent cancer and heart disease, & strengthen vision
*have lots of vitamin A, which is good for eyes and skin, and helps the
immune system

67
 Eating Purple

Purple foods have ANTHOCYANINS and PHENOLICS, which:

*Are known for having “anti-aging” properties; may improve memory
*Help improve circulation, prevent blood clots, help heart function

68
 Eating red

Red foods have CAROTENOIDS and ANTHOCYANINS, which:

*Are good for preventing heart disease, cancer, and prostate problems
*Help reduce skin damage from the sun and improve memory function

69
 Eating white

Whitish / greenish foods in this group have ALLICIN, which:

*Has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, and anti-viral properties
*May prevent cancer and heart disease and help lower cholesterol, and
improve heart health

70
 Eating yellow

Yellow foods are high in ANTIOXIDANTS like vitamin C, which:

*helps keep our teeth and gums healthy, heals cuts, improves the mucus
membranes (like when you have a cold)
*Helps with iron absorbtion, prevents inflammation, improves circulation

71
 SCRAPPLE AND THE BEANSTALK
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How does soil type affect growth in plants?

OBJECTIVES:
This activity which is often employed in classrooms to grow seedlings, is
formatted to teach children how different types of soil may affect the growth
process in plants.

You may divide your students into groups as needed for this activity.

STANDARDS:
Biology/Science
Math

METHODS:
Student Participation/Discussion

PROCEDURE:
Teacher Led

MATERIALS:
* 3 milk cartons
* 3 types of soil (below)
* radish, bean, or corn seeds
* scissors

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING: Journaling and graphs. Ask students

what they think of the soil quality in their neighborhoods.

72
 Scrapple and the
beanstalk
Scrapple’s been trying to figure out how she and her food
friends can grow to be bigger and healthier. The problem
is, she doesn’t know in what kind of soil she would thrive in!
She has devised an experiment for you to help her out...

Cut off the top of the milk cartons to make

1 planters from the bottom half. Ask your teacherr
for assistance.

Fill the cartons with soil.

- Plant "A" has compost soil.
2 - Plant "B" has top soil found in your
neighborhood or backyard.
- Plant "C" has store bought potting soil.

Push the seed down with your finger until they

3 are at least 2cm below the surface. Water the
soil with the same amount in each carton.

During 5-10 days, the seeds should germinate and sprout.

4 After seeds appear, divide the cartons into 3 groups to test
growing conditions.

Which seed sprouted faster? which one is healthier? Record

your observations.

Soil scientists have

identified over 70,000
kinds of soil in the
United States!

73
 Garbage Pizza
Make a Garbage Pizza
It may be hard to imagine how much of each type of trash is
buried in landfills, but it’s easier to visualize if you make a pie chart
showing the percentages. You can create a model by making a
trash pizza covered with actual solid waste that is thrown away.
Your pizza will have “everything” on it. You wouldn’t want to eat
this pizza, but it will help you become more aware of the amount
of trash Americans throw away and the composition of our
landfills.

1 Cut out the pizza circle from the red paper.

Glue the pizza on a cardboard plate. With a

2 brown crayon or marker, color in the crust.

Glue samples of the trash or garbage to the

3 pizza slices in your chart. When you’re finished,
display your pizza!

On average, Americans
generate 4.5 pounds of
trash every day. That’s
1500 pounds per year!

74
75
 RECYCLE PAPER
INSTRUCTOR GUIDELINES

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: How is paper recycled?

OBJECTIVES:
Students will recycle their own paper, in a method similar to industrial methods.

TOPICS COVERED:
Technology

METHODS:
Hands-on activity, possible experimentation

PROCEDURE:
The “Recycle Paper!” handout contains instructions tor the students. Explain
that paper is made from wood fibers and glue, and to recycle paper those
fibers must be separated and glued back together again. Depending on the
end use of the paper, the students can experiment and mix different colors
and weights, but for writing paper white paper with little ink is the best. If a
blender is available, it helps to shred the paper (in water) but is not necessary.

MATERIALS:
Scissors, glue, a metal sieve, a bucket/tub, warm water, a flat, non-porous
surface (plastic, cookie sheet, etc)

MODIFICATIONS:
Students could try different colors and weights, or different thicknesses. Decorations
could be added to the paper as well

ASSESSMENT/OBSERVATION/REPORTING:
Students may use the paper for their journals

76
 Zero Waste Log
First, get some paper. You can collect scrap paper, or
1 see “Recycle Paper!” to make your own. In any case,
you’ll want similar-size sheets of paper. These will be your
pages.

Next, find some cardboard. You’ll need two pieces that

2 are a little larger than your paper folded in half. These
will be your covers.

Now look for fabric, or paper with patterns on it, or even

3 wallpaper that can cover up one side of each of your
cover materials. Of course, if you have something cool
for a cover already, you can skip this step. You can also
find things to attach to your covers, like beads.

Fold your paper in half and decorate your covers as

4 you see fit.

Now it’s time to bind your journal. You can use staples,
5 string, old shoelaces, ribbon, glue... Make a fold about
a centimeter from one edge (the “spine”) of each
cover, and attach the folded pages at the fold. Enjoy
your new journal!

A 15-year-old tree
can supply enough
paper for 700 paper
bags!

77
 Waste Management
How do other cities deal with
their Waste?
This is a writing and research activity to learn how other
cities deal with their waste.

How does your city recycle?

1

What other major cities recycle? What items

2 do these cities recycle? Are any of these cities
composting?

Does recycling change in different countries?

3 How are people recycling in Cairo? How are
people recycling in cities in South America?
What city is the best recycler?

In the united states

1,500 aluminum cans are
recycled every second

78
Additional Resources
Waste Matters
For background on this guide as well as an electronic version of the booklet see:
www.archeworks.org/wastematters

One Drop
A three week after-school curriculum designed to engage the next generation in
waster conservation.
http://onedrop.movingdesign.com/#

Virtual Water
The Virtual Water Project would like to show the world how much freshwater is
used to produce products.
http://www.virtualwater.eu/

Garbage Dreams
An independent film that highlights recycling efforts in Cairo and in American
cities.
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/garbage-dreams/game.html

Bokashi Resources
Need help with your effective microorganism? Here is a series of websites that
provide background on Bokashi.
http://www.composterconnection.com/site/bokashi.html
http://www.bokashicycle.com/howitworks.html
http://akbiosoil.com/index.html

Vermicomposting Resources
http://www.recycleworks.org/compost/wormfood.html

The Greater Victoria Compost Education Center

A non-profit education center that aims to provide composting and gardening
education programming.
http://www.compost.bc.ca/

Vegan Nutritionista
Nutrition background on common fruits and vegetables,
recipes, and a blog.
http://www.vegan-nutritionista.com/index.html
Archeworks Agri-Gate Team:

Lindsay Banks
Luis Garcia
Eric Heineman
Jared Lauridsen
Michelle Ruiz
Philip Syvertsen
Meredith Vlahakis

Facilitators:

Catherine Muller
Mason Pritchett
Ryan Wilson

Special thanks to Katie Vail for her editing talents.