HAVE FUN WITH COMPOST
TEACHER’S PACK
For Senior Classes
1
Contents
1. Teachers notes
About Green Home
About this pack
Curriculum links
Background to composting
Composting and the environment
Composting glossary
General guidance
Recommended websites
2. Resource Card 1 - ???
2
About Green Home
Green Home is a new environmental programme designed for the
householder to use within their own homes. The programme is being
developed by An Taisce Education Unit in partnership with the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under their National Waste
Prevention Programme.
About this pack
This teacher’s pack is designed for use by school children from 3rd to
6th class at primary level. It contains an introduction to the world of
composting followed by resource cards and activity sheets on the
subject of composting. Where possible, the activities have been
designed to link back to the curriculum. The aim of this pack is to
develop knowledge on the subject of composting and its benefits to
the environment among school children and their families. Practical
activities will allow students to develop real skills in this area of
composting.
Curriculum Links
SUBJECT
LINKING TO THE CURRICULUM
SESE




Environmental awareness and care
Study of materials and their properties
Living things/plants and animals
Develop a scientific approach to problem
solving
SPHE

Myself and the wider world/developing
citizenship
3
Background to composting
Compost is a dark, nutrient-rich soil conditioner. It is created when
organic waste, such as kitchen and garden waste, is broken down by
various organisms in a controlled environment such as a compost bin
or a compost heap. Bacteria, fungi, and invertebrates such as worms,
beetles and slugs are some of the organisms that cause breakdown
or decomposition. These organisms are known as decomposers.
Decomposers break down the organic waste by feeding on the
organic material. Organic material is anything that was once living
such as leaves, grass cuttings, vegetable and fruit peelings, egg
shells, coffee grounds, tea bags, newspapers, etc. In a compost bin,
you can compost almost anything that was once alive, apart from
cooked food, meat and fish and waste of animal origin. These items
can attract pests and vermin like flies and rats.
Standard compost bin
Model: inside of a compost bin
View inside a compost bin
4
Composting occurs naturally in nature, where nothing is wasted. For
example, when leaves fall to the ground from deciduous trees in
autumn, they are consumed by decomposers such as bacteria, fungi,
millipedes, woodlice and earthworms. The main plant nutrients
needed by plants to grow and be healthy are as follows:
phosphorous, nitrogen, calcium, magnesium and potassium. These
nutrients are found in the leaf litter and are returned to the soil by the
actions of the decomposers. The nutrients are then absorbed by the
surrounding flora through the soil and nothing is wasted.
When we compost at home or in school, we are copying this natural
process while keeping it confined to a controlled environment like a
compost bin. Composting is a relatively simple process that can be
carried out in a garden or school grounds. All that is needed is a
patch of earth, a compost bin and a kitchen caddy to contain kitchen
waste. In a school environment, a kitchen caddy could be placed in
each classroom to be collected and emptied by a student on a regular
basis. The result, after about six to nine months, is compost.
Compost can be used to fertilise and condition soil in plant pots,
flower beds, vegetable patches etc. Instructions on how to set up a
compost bin at home or in school will follow. Composting is a fun and
educational means for children and the whole family to learn together
about managing their own organic waste and helping the
environment.
Composting and the environment
Composting is of great benefit to the environment in many ways.
When we compost at home or in school, we reduce the amount of
waste that is sent to landfill sites. At landfill sites, all the waste is
dumped together and is left to rot without air (anaerobic
decomposition). Anaerobically rotting waste produces methane,
which is a powerful greenhouse gas that is a contributor towards
climate change. The production of gases such as methane means
that landfill sites are very expensive and difficult to manage. Leachate
is a liquid waste which is produced when organic waste rots without
air in landfill and is another problem associated with organic waste in
landfill. Leachate can pollute nearby water supplies and soil and, like
5
methane, is very expensive to contain and manage. Finding sites for
new landfills has also become very difficult in Ireland.
Standards at landfill sites in Ireland have improved a great deal in the
past decade and we have come very far from the ‘town dump’ or
backyard burning that were the previous solutions to getting rid of
waste. Unfortunately however, as standards at landfill sites have
improved, so has the amount of waste that we are producing. With
the arrival of the Celtic Tiger, the amount of waste that we produce
has increased on a yearly basis as personal and household
consumption increases.
When items such as paper are taken into account, up to 50% of a
household bin can be composted and this represents a significant
proportion of waste that would otherwise have gone straight to
landfill. For these reasons, it is very important to manage our own
organic waste by composting at home and in school.
6
Composting Glossary
Organic waste: is food and garden waste. It is also known as
biodegradable waste and includes living or once living things.
Organism: an individual living system (such as animal, plant, fungus
or micro-organism).
Invertebrates: animals without backbones. For example, slugs,
beetles, millipedes etc.
Decomposition: rotting
Decomposers: decomposers break down or consume dead plants
and animals and waste from other organisms. Examples of
decomposers are as follows: bacteria, fungi, woodlice, millipedes.
Deciduous: deciduous plants, trees and shrubs are those that lose all
of their leaves for part of the year.
Plant nutrients: Plants need nutrients in order to grow, develop and
complete their life cycle. Important plant nutrients include potassium,
calcium, phosphorous, nitrogen and magnesium and these are taken
up by the roots of the tree through the soil.
Flora: plant life in an area.
Landfill site: a landfill is a site for the disposal of waste materials by
burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment. Landfill remains the
main waste management practice in Ireland.
Anaerobic decomposition: organic waste rotting without air.
Methane: a relatively potent greenhouse gas with a high global
warming potential. More on global warming to follow.
7
Global warming/the greenhouse effect/climate change:
What is causing global warming?
Scientists agree that the burning of fossil fuels like oil, coal and gas
causes greenhouse gases to escape into the air. These gases are
causing most of the warming. Another cause is deforestation (cutting
down trees). Trees soak up carbon dioxide, one of the greenhouse
gases, from the air. If we remove trees, there will be more carbon
present in the atmosphere.
What is the difference between "global warming" and "climate
change?"
"Global warming" refers to the increase of the Earth's average
surface temperature, due to a build-up of greenhouse gases in the
atmosphere. "Climate change" is a broader term that refers to longterm changes in climate, including average temperature
and precipitation.
What will happen if global warming continues?
There are already some changes happening because of global
warming. Sea levels are rising and some animals are already moving
to new areas.
If the warming gets worse, as scientists expect, there may be some
kinds of plants and animals that become extinct (disappear
completely) because they can’t move to or adapt to new areas. There
may be more storms and floods. Sea levels may rise so much that
people have to move away from the coasts. Some areas may
experience drought and may become too dry for farming.
Leachate: the liquid wastes generated at landfill sites, which have to
be captured and treated before being returned to the water-table.
8
General Guidance
Before starting the composting project, ask the children to think about
the rubbish they generate every day. They could look in their lunch
boxes at the leftover waste such as fruit peelings, wrappers, empty
bottles etc. They could also look in the class rubbish bin and recycling
bins to see what could be recycled/composted/thrown away. If
available, hand around a small sample of compost for the children to
touch and smell and explain that compost can be made from organic
waste. Explain that by composting much of the rubbish they throw in
the bin, the waste could be transformed into compost and used to
grow plants and flowers. For instructions on how to set up a compost
bin, please visit the following websites.
Recommended websites
Irish
International
www.ipcc.ie
www.hdra.org.uk/schools_orga
nic_network
www.raceagainstwaste.com
www.enfo.ie
www.commtechlab.msu.edu/sit
es/dlc-me/zoo/
www.cre.ie
www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms
www.growgreensolutions.com
www.schoolsgarden.org.uk
www.wigglywigglers.co.uk
www.littlerotters.org.uk
www.elementgreen.com
www.ollierecycles.com/uk
9
Activity 1
Rubbish Detectives
Outcome: This activity is designed to be carried out by students at
home. Its aim is to get students thinking about the amount and types
of waste thrown away at home. It can equally be applied to the waste
thrown away in a classroom.
Letter to householders:
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As part of the Green Home Programme, we are asking you to take part with your
children in an audit on your household waste for 5 days.
This will involve the following:

Separating and weighing your:
1) Waste to landfill
2) Waste to be recycled
3) Organic waste (if you have a compost bin)

These different forms of waste are weighed on a daily basis for 5 days and
the weights should be recorded on the “Waste Audit Sheet”.
Purpose of the Household Waste Audit Project:


To develop awareness among students and householders of the types
and volumes of waste generated by households.
Once completed, the findings will be calculated among all students and
results will be displayed on the school notice board.
To carry out the household waste audit, you will need the following:




The “Waste Audit Sheet” (included with this letter)
Rubber gloves
Household weighing scales
Boxes or several medium sized rubbish bags (depending on the amount of
waste involved).
10
Activity 1
Instructions:





Please enter the day and date you are to begin the audit in the box
marked “Day 1” on the “Waste Audit Sheet”. Please indicate here the type
of measurement you are using, for example, kilograms or pounds and
ounces.
On Day 1, using bags or boxes, please separate your waste into “waste to
landfill” and “waste to be recycled”. If you compost organic waste, then
you can also weigh the organic waste on a daily basis and enter the
weight into the section marked “weight of organic waste to compost bin”.
It is advisable to tell your children not to pick up any sharp or dangerous
objects in the waste.
Continue weighing your waste every day and entering the weight onto the
“Waste Audit Sheet” for five days. If you wish, you could carry out the
survey for a further two days to get an idea of the waste produced in a
whole week.
Please return the completed sheet to the school with your child.
If you have any queries about the Household Waste Audit Project, please call the
Green Home Team on 01 4002218. We wish you all the best with your
Household Waste Audit and look forward to receiving the overall results from
your school.
With kind regards,
Deirdre McGovern
Green Home Officer
Environmental Education Unit
An Taisce
5A Swifts Alley
Francis Street
Dublin 8.
Telephone +353 1 4002205
Fax +353 1 4002285
(For a printable version of all activities, please visit www.greenhome.ie)
11
Activity 1
Rubbish Detectives
Name of student:________________________________________
Date audit is sent home:__________________________________
Household name:________________________________________
Location of household (street or area):
_______________________________________________________
Name of each person living in household during project
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
Name:_________________________________________________
12
Activity 1
Rubbish Detectives: Household Waste Audit
Day and date:
Measurement:
Weight of waste Weight
of Weight
of
to landfill
recycled waste
organic waste to
compost bin (if
applicable)
(eg kilograms or
pounds and ounces)
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6 (optional)
Day 7 (optional)
Good luck and have fun!
13
Activity 2
Biodegradable and non-biodegradable materials
Outcome: This activity is designed to teach students about the rate at
which different materials decompose. The apple core and newspaper
sheets will eventually decompose while the plastic bag should show
no decomposition over the course of the project. See Table A for the
decomposition time of various items.
You will need





Shovel or spade
1 - 2 sheets of damp, crumpled newspaper
1 - 2 apple cores
1 plastic bag
Gardening tags (eg lollipop sticks) to indicate the date, where a
hole is dug and what has been placed in the hole.
Instructions
1. Locate a suitable area in the school grounds to dig three holes,
approximately 6 inches to 1 foot deep and 6 inches in diameter.
2. Using the shovel or spade, dig three holes.
3. In one of the holes, place the apple cores. In the second hole,
place the plastic bag. In the third hole, place the sheets of
damp, crumpled newspaper. Refill the holes with earth.
4. After three weeks, dig up the items to see how far they have
decomposed. Refill the holes and repeat step four after another
three weeks.
5. Keep a chart to indicate the date and rate of decomposition.
Photos could be included in this chart. Ask the students to
imagine why some materials decompose faster than others and
which organisms may be consuming them in the soil.
Note: if it is not possible to dig holes in the school grounds, a similar experiment
can be carried out in the classroom. Take some pieces of rubbish such as an
apple, a crisp packet and a piece of newspaper and put them in a glass jar with a
cloth or paper cover. Watch to see which ones change over time and learn which
are suitable for composting.
14
Activity 2
Material
Decomposition time
Bus ticket
2-4 weeks
Cotton fabric
1-5 months
Rope
3-14 months
Woolen fabric
1 year
Painted wood
13 years
Tin
50-100 years
Aluminium can
100-200 years
Plastic bottle
Around 450 years (depending on
its chemical characteristics)
Glass bottle
Unknown (glass items made
3000-4000 years ago survive to
our day)
Table A: Decomposition time of some common items. The decomposition time of
materials varies depending on factors like temperature, presence of oxygen,
moisture, presence of micro-organisms etc. (Medies:2007)
15
Activity 3
What can go into a compost bin?
Outcome: Students will learn how to identify ‘composting creatures’
and what materials can go into a compost bin.
Place a tick beside the materials that cannot be
composted and an x beside the materials that can be
composted.
Write  or x
Write  or x
Fish bones
Banana peel
Egg cartons
Cheese
Grass cuttings
Meat
16