Unit Design “Repurposing to help the Environment”
Stage I) Establish relevance
Lessons at this stage help students…



Identify and make connections to the things they dispose of in their lives.
Raise questions to why we don’t recycle more items.
Identify and explore assumptions and prior knowledge about trash disposal.
Guiding Questions:



Where do the items you buy or consume go when you don’t want them anymore?
What are different ways to dispose of your things?
Where in your community can you dispose of the things you buy?
“Big Ideas”: Students will understand that…
Indicators of Understanding/Standards:
We know students know when they can...
Resources/lessons/learning activities
(including formative and embedded
assessments)
Things they buy or consume can be
disposed of in other ways than being placed
in the trash.
There are other ways to dispose of items
that they normally use in their lives.
Identify what items can be recycled,
reused, repurposed, and fixed.
Lesson called the waste sorting game.
Explain the benefits of recycling, reused,
and repurposing items.
Lesson called the waste sorting game.
Stage II) Investigate/Reflect
Lessons at this stage help students…



Explore and investigate their community for the items they consume, use, and dispose.
Analyze how the items they consume, use, and dispose impact their community.
Evaluate the environmental impact these items have on different locations in their community.
Guiding Questions:



Where in your community can you dispose of your items you don’t use?
Where in your community can you buy, sell, trade, and borrow items you use like food, toys, clothes, and other items?
Where in your community do you find repurposed items?
“Big Ideas”: Students will understand that…
Everything they consume has a role in the
process of being disposed.
Indicators of Understanding/Standards:
We know students know when they can...
Locate a place on their maps where they
can dispose, recycle, or take things to be
fixed in lieu of disposing in the trash.
Everything they purchase or consume comes Differentiate between local goods and
from somewhere either local or from other
non-local goods. Locate place on their
places.
maps that sell local only goods, both local
and non-local goods.
Resources/lessons/learning activities
(including formative and embedded
assessments)
Lesson on map making of their community
regarding how they consume and dispose
of items they use or consume.
Lesson on map making of their community
showing locations where they buy, sell,
trade, and borrow the things they use in
their lives.
Stage III) Make Decisions
Lessons at this stage help students…



Evaluate ways they can dispose of their items either through recycling, reusing, reducing, or repurposing.
Assess benefits to disposing their items by other means besides just throwing them in the trash.
Decide if their solutions can address better ways to dispose of trash.
Guiding Questions:



What do you do with your unwanted items?
What are creative ways to repurpose your items in lieu placing them in the trash?
How does recycling, reusing, reducing, or repurposing your items help improve the environment?
“Big Ideas”: Students will understand that…
Indicators of Understanding/Standards:
We know students know when they can...
Resources/lessons/learning activities
(including formative and embedded
assessments)
There are different ways to dispose of their
unwanted items.
Identify items in their lives that can be
recycled, reused, fixed, or repurposed.
Lesson on the story of repurposing items.
The benefits of repurposing items into other
useable items and the positive effects on the
environment.
Demonstrate ways they and their families
repurpose items in their lives.
Lesson of the story of repurposing items.
Stage IV) Act on Decisions
Lessons at this stage help students…



Set goals to reduce, reuse, recycle, or repurpose more items.
Work in groups or individually to create a repurposable artwork.
Reflect on the ways we dispose of items.
Guiding Questions:



What type of item did you use? Recyclable? Reusable? Are you reducing waste?
What type of repurposable item did you make and why?
What have you learned about repurposing that you could continue to use?
“Big Ideas”: Students will understand that…
Indicators of Understanding/Standards:
We know students know when they can...
Resources/lessons/learning activities
(including formative and embedded
assessments)
Repurposing has the same benefits as
recycling, reusing, and reducing waste.
Creatively create something new out of
old items that can be useful in their lives.
Lesson of creating repurposable item and
displaying it in a community art show.
Repurposing can bring the community
together thru artworks created with
repurposable items.
Get the community involved in a
community art show displaying
repurposed items in art displays.
Lesson of creating repurposable item and
displaying it in a community art show.