Materials
white paper
child-safe scissors
blue and green markers
cotton balls
vegetable oil
Instructions
* Make 12 flash cards and boxes using pictures from magazines: three with
pictures of plastic items, three with pictures of metal items, three with
pictures of paper items, and three with pictures of nonrecyclable items (doll,
puppy, hat, and so on).
* Label boxes "plastic," "paper," or "metal"; pictures on the boxes are helpful.
What to Do
1. Engage the children in a discussion about recycling and the three types of
materials that people can recycle.
2. Show the children a flash card. Identify the item. Ask, "Can it be recycled?
Which bin should we place the item in?"
3. Teach the children the following fingerplay.
Clap to the rhythm of the rhyme. The last
line gets three strong claps.
Toss It In by Christina Chilcote
Toss in the plastic.
Toss in the tin.
Toss in the paper.
Toss it in!
Teacher - to - Teacher Tip
* While real items can be used instead of pictures,
make sure metal objects have no sharp edges.
Assessment
Consider the following:
* After the group practice, can each child identify if an item should be
recycled?
* Can the children determine which bin each item should go in?
