Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: Two on a page

20 minutes

Find Out: Impact of plastics

30 minutes

Take Action: Saltwater sea experiment

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions:

Students will:

understand how different materials (hard and soft plastics, liquids and oils) interact with the ocean
understand how different types of waste impact our oceans.

Success criteria:

Students can:

identify three different types of oceanic pollution
identify the physical properties of different sources of pollution (plastics, hard, soft, liquid)
report and analyse the results of a science experiment.

Tune In: Two on a page

Step 1

Students begin this lesson by participating in a timed, 5 minute quick draw to determine their prior knowledge and start the thinking process about the plastics in our oceans.

Begin by organising the students into pairs. Provide one piece of A3 sized paper and two coloured pencils for each student pair. Pairs will need to work on the same piece of paper. The students need to work quickly to draw everything they know in response to the following question:

What do you know about plastic in the ocean?

Ask the students to write the question on the top of the page to provide a clear focus. Make sure that the students use only one coloured pencil each during the draw. As the students draw they begin to share ideas and work together. This allows peer to peer learning and provides insight into the students' prior knowledge. Ask the students to write their own name on the page in the same colour they completed the draw to allow you to see the individual student contribution to the page. Once finished leave the sheets with the students so they can add to the drawing later in the session.

Find Out: Impact of plastics

Step 1

Now, watch the following clip with the class. As they watch, invite students to record anything they think is important or interesting:

What really happens to plastics? - (https://youtu.be/6xlNyWPpB8)

Once complete, engage students in a class discussion around their thoughts. Consider using the following questions to guide your discussion:

What is this clip about? What did you see in this clip?
Why is plastic in our oceans?
What happens to the plastic once it gets into the ocean?
What are microplastics?
Why is plastic in the ocean a problem?
What does this clip make you think about?
What questions does this clip leave you with?

Through your discussion, lead the students to the idea that plastic behaves in a particular way once it is in the ocean. For example:

How can plastics change from large objects to smaller microplastics? (Suggested answer: Sunlight and bacteria cause the larger pieces of plastic to become brittle and break apart, eventually becoming microplastics.)
How does liquid pollution interact with the sea? (Suggested answer: Liquid pollution can coat objects and disperse through the water.)

Step 2

Now, invite students to watch the following clip as a class. Again, as they watch, invite students to record anything important or interesting in the clip:

Corporate responsibility - (https://vimeo.com/1056609430/02c62611af)

Step 3

Once complete, engage students in a class discussion around their thoughts. Consider the following questions in your discussion:

What did you see in this clip?
What did this clip make you think about?
How did this clip help you understand the problem of plastics and waste in our oceans?
What questions do you now have about this issue?

Tip: You could record students thoughts and use some of these ideas to guide further discussion or inquiry.

Take Action: Saltwater sea experiment

Preparation

Organise the materials for the experiment and place these items on a separate equipment table. Each group will need a small amount of different plastic pieces - hard plastic (lids, caps,bottles) and soft plastic (bags, food packets, ziplock bags), as well as cooking salt, water, food dye, cooking oil, one medium to large bowl, 1 litre beaker or measuring cups.

Step 1

During the experiment the students will be observing how different materials interact when they are added to saltwater. Provide each student with a copy of the Student Worksheet to record their own observations. As a whole class read through the instructions (below) before beginning the experiment.

Instructions:

Divide the students into groups of three or four.
Provide each group with a variety of hard and soft plastic items.
Students need to make a seawater solution of 35g of salt to 1 litre of water and fill their bowl with salty water.
Students should add two to three plastic items to the water and observe what happens. Do the plastic pieces float or sink? Does the plastic shrink or grow? Does it break apart or does it absorb the water and grow? Does the water soften the plastic and allow you to change its size or shape? Does the way the plastic moves change as the size changes?
Students record their observations on the Student Worksheet.
Students should now add their liquid pollution (e.g. food dye, cooking oil) to the bowl. These should be added one at a time. Add the food dye to one area of the bowl. Add the oil into another area of the bowl. What happens to the liquid pollution as it enters the bowl? What happens to the plastic as it come into contact with the food dye or the oil?
Students record their observations of the dye and oil on the Student Worksheet.

Step 2

Once you have completed your experiment, organise the students into a discussion circle and invite the students to share their observations and results as part of the discussion.

Discuss the observations students recorded on their Worksheets, including:

What did you see (observe) happening in your experiment?
What happened as you changed different parts of your experiment (variables)?
How did the size of the plastic piece affect the experiment?
Did it make a difference if the plastic was hard or soft?
What happened with you added in the food dye or oil?
How did your predictions compare with your observations?
How would you change this experiment if you were to repeat it?

Step 3

Break the class into pairs and assign pairs with two of the following questions to answer, ensuring that each question is answered (questions also available on the Student Worksheet):

What impact does plastic pollution have on our oceans?
What are some of the different ways materials may change over longer periods of time in the ocean?
What role might the sun have in breaking down the plastics?
Does the size of the plastic matter?
What could you do to limit plastics entering into the oceans?
How are single use plastics impacting our oceans? (Think about straws, ziplock bags etc.)

Once complete, engage students in a class discussion around their answers.

Reflection

Invite students to revisit the ‘Two on a Page’ drawing. Provide each students with a pencil of a different colour to complete the draw. Invite the students to add new learning into their shared page. Again allow 5 minutes for the students to add in any additional information they have learnt. Ask the students to underline their name with the new colour they used.

Assessment

Teacher can use the following items as part of their assessment:

Two on a page drawing to determine what the students currently know about plastics in the ocean. Re-visited draw to add in additional knowledge that the students have gained.
Student Worksheet to determine understanding of the way plastics interact in saltwater.
Class discussions and feedback from students.

For summative assessment, visit the Drawing Conclusions lesson: Blue: We Owe The Ocean - Years 5 & 6.

Blue - Plastic Not So Fantastic

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Summary

Learning intentions:

Students will...

Success criteria:

Students can...

Lesson Guides and Printables

Lesson Details

Skills

Curriculum Mapping

Resources Required

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Additional Info

Related Professional Learning

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