@MikeLRecycle www.eastcambs.gov.uk@EastCambs @eastcambsgov

Be like Michael and recycle!

01353 665555customerservices@eastcambs.gov.uk

Contents page

An introductionThe show Michael and the curriculumGet involvedA waste of a day Testing and sorting rubbishFun facts and figuresMore fun facts Make your own bowling setCreate colourful crayonsColour and keepWordsearchKeep in touch

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Contents page

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Educating children about the importance of recycling and the environment provides a path to a greener future. Here in East Cambridgeshire, we have an excellent recycling rate of 56.4%, making the district the 26th best English council for waste collection.

But we believe that by working with our primary schools and talking directly to the younger generation, we can do even better.

This is where you – and Michael - come in.

An introduction

1

The Show

Jess is a mess. Her room is a tip and everything she breaks, she bins.

Her mum and dad are not good role models either. “Chuck it away!” they tell her when her toothbrush stops working. “Chuck it away!” they suggest when she says she no longer likes to dress up in her superhero costume.

“It would be nice to have a superhero who controls all your mess,” her mum admits, putting the clothes in the bin.

This performance, created by Matthew Townshend Productions in conjunction with the drama studio at Anglia Ruskin University, takes the audience on a journey of rubbish.

Through the cycle of one day, they look at everything we throw away while a pile of rubbbish is accumulated at the side of the stage.

The play ends with Jess falling asleep, surrounded by her mess. At which point,Michael appears.

But Michael isn’t the recycling hero we thought he was. In fact, he is just a boywho has found the discarded superhero costume in the bin.

He needs help to learn what can be recycled – and this leads us to an innovative workshop session with the pupils.

2

Michael and the curriculum

The aim of our performance and participative session is to encourage children in Key Stage 2 to use their imaginations, identify problems and find solutions.

The Michael Recycle performance has been carefully created with the help of Matthew Townshend Productions, a company which has expertise in educational theatre and learning.

It aims to support programmes of study in English, Maths and Science and as such, it ties in with the STEM curriculum where possible.

Our objectives include support for programmes of study in:

The production encourages speaking and listening skills, focusing on debate and persuasive argument. During the performance, pupils will interact with the characters and be asked to help Michael become a recycling hero. They should tell us what they know, rather than expect to be told the answers. After the visit pupils can write a report on the day or construct persuasive arguements for and against recycling.

English

Reflecting on what they have seen, pupils can list and count the different items that were thrown away in one imaginary day - considering weight, size and volume. Using multiplication they can create estimates on waste for a street, district or town. They can consider how waste is transported, the distances and amount of space required for landfill. Their results could be presented in graphs and charts.

Maths

The programme will lead the children to look at different materials and processes. They can explore the sources of these materials and the processes that are needed to take a raw material to a finished product, as well as the processes involved in recycling those products. This will give pupils a greater understanding of the items we use every day, their origins and their components.

Science

We have prepared a selection of educational resources to help you to expand and elaborate on the messages received during the Michael Recycle performance.

This booklet includes a support pack for you to use if you would like to improve your recycling facilities at school or to help you develop a school Eco Team. We have also provided some suggested educational activities to try in class as well as some ideas for recycling-themed activities to be completed at home.

Michael would love to see what you have achieved as a result of his work here – so please keep us posted!

Educational materials

3

Get involvedRecycling schemes in schools help to improve the environment and can reduce money spent by the school on waste disposal.

Start a school Eco Team with representatives from each year group. The team should be responsible for championing school recycling. This might involve campaigns, assemblies or fundraising.

Paper is the main form of waste created by schools, making up at least a quarter of all its rubbish so if you don’t have one, contact us at the council and we will provide you with a blue-lidded recycling bin for paper and other recyclable waste.

Set up a paper collection scheme in each classroom by making ‘paper only’ boxes for the children and teachers to put used paper in. Label them clearly and place them next to the normal waste bin.

Metal recycling schemes are good for schools with vending machines. Place recycling bins for cans next to the vending machines and make sure they are clearly labelled.

Buy recycled print cartridges whenever possible.

Create posters for the school to encourage other pupils to think before they bin items which can be recycled.

Consider setting up a composting bin at school – it’s a great way for budding gardeners to get their hands dirty. If your school has a garden, then you can add leaves, plant cuttings and grass trimmings to the compost heap.

Teachers and children can be involved in making the compost by adding items such as tea bags, coffee granules, fruit and vegetable cuttings from the cafeteria.

4

Here are some ideas to help you improve your recycling efforts in school:

Post show activitiesA waste of a day

Here are all the items that Jess threw away during the day. Which items should she have recycled instead? Is there anything that can’t be recycled?

Things to think about:

How many components of a car can be recycled? And what about an electric toothbrush? What happens to old batteries?

What can we do with eggs shells and vegetable scraps?

Consider using different coloured pens to work out what can be recycled in whichbin - paper, glass, metals, green waste and plastics.

5

Post show activitiesSorting waste

Children could be asked to bring in a selection of rubbish from home as well as collecting some from around the school.

They could then sort and test the selection of materials (plastic, glass, paper, metal). Can they select equipment needed to test the properties of materials (for example, a magnet to test steel or iron)?

Can the children use correct vocabulary to describe the properties of materials (such as transparent or flexible)?

Are there any materials that aren’t recyclable? What happens to these?

Pupils could make a record of the different waste products thrown out each week at home.

Which recycling bin is the fullest at the end of the week?

Why do they think that is?

Pupils could construct a graph, pie chart or table of this data and compare their findings with other class members.

PlasticGlass

Metal Paper

6

PlasticGlass

Metal Paper

Fun facts and figures to talk about in class

When Jess presents her homework on recycling, she has found out the following:

It takes 70% less energy to recycle a piece of paper than make a new one

Recycling one tin can can save enough energy to keep your TV on for three hours

Plastic can take up to five hundred years to decompose

Here are some more facts and figures for you:

Over 12.5 million tonnes of paper and cardboard are used in the UK per year

An incredible 24 million tonnes of aluminium is produced annually, 51,000 tonnes of which ends up as packaging (drinks and food cans) in the UK

Glass is 100% recyclable and can be reused over and over again

3hours

TV

Plastic items such as carrier bags and bottles that end up in our oceans kill approximately 1,000,000 sea creatures each and every year

It is estimated that as much as 80% of the contents of our general waste could have been recycled or composted.

7

Here are some more facts and figures for you:

Every year 18 million tonnes of waste is landfilled in UK sites

On average every person in the UK throws away their own body weight in rubbish every seven weeks. In less than two hours the UK could fill the Albert Hall with its waste.

More fun facts and figures to talk about in class

107774kg

103,000 double decker buses

Each year in the UK, we dispose of enough electrical and electronic waste to equal the weight of 1,000,000 cars.

The average person throws away 74kg of food waste each year. This is the equivalent of 1077 banana skins

The amount of waste paper sent to landfill each year would fill 103,000 double decker buses

8

1077

What you need:

Between three and ten plastic beverage bottles of the same size

Optional: Sticky-back plastic, tissue paper, crepe paper, glue or stickers

A lightweight ball

Sand for weighing down the bottles and funnel for adding sand to the bottles

Peel the labels off the plastic beverage bottles. You can make this easier by soaking them in soapy warm water.

Wash and dry the plastic beverage bottles. Make sure the bottles are fully dry before decorating with stickers or covering with paper.

If you would like to add a bit of weight to your bowling pins, use the funnel to add a handful of sand to each bottle. The sand will weigh the bottle down, making it a bit harder to knock over.

To try at home

Method

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Plastic bottles

BallSand

Stickers

Make your own bowling set

9

To try at home

Recycle and reuse your old crayons

What you need:

Old broken crayons

Mini-cake or mini-muffin baking tins

Tin foil

A sharp kitchen knife

Oven

Collect your old and broken crayons. Peel off any paper remaining on your crayons.Ask an adult to chop the crayons into small pieces using the kitchen knife.Ask an adult to preheat the oven to 150°C.Line your baking tins with tin foil.Place your crayon pieces in the tins however you like. Try different colour combinations and mix and match.The tins should bake in the oven for approximately 15 to 20 minutes, or just until the crayons have melted. When the crayons have melted, ask an adult take the tins out of the oven to cool.Once your crayons have cooled, you may remove them from the tin.

Method

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You can reuse your old, broken crayons and create your own colourful, one-of-a-kind crayons!

This activity requires adult help and supervision.

10

Recycle and reuse your old crayons to colour in Michael.

Colour and keep

11

Fill in the speech bubbles with facts from the show.

Wordsearch

MICHAELRECYCLEGREEN

Help Michael find these words and be a recycling hero too!

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The words could be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, or even backwards!

@MikeLRecycle www.eastcambs.gov.uk@EastCambs @eastcambsgov

Keep in touch

01353 665555comms@eastcambs.gov.uk

The Michael Recycle performance workshop is made possible thanks to East Cambridgeshire District Council in conjunction with Matthew Townshend Productions and the drama studio at Anglia Ruskin University.

We are thriled that you have taken part in this drama-inspired lesson and would love to hear about your experiences and future plans for recycling in the school setting.

Please send us your photographs, your recycling top tips and any facts you find out. Share your thoughts on social media or email us using the contact details below.

Wordsearch

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The words could be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, or even backwards!