Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

5 minutes

Part A: Activating Prior Knowledge

25 minutes

Part B: Recycling a House

40 minutes

Part C: Narrative Writing

25 minutes

Part D: Feedback

5 minutes

Reflection

Part A: Activating Prior Knowledge

Step 1

Begin this lessons by providing students with the opportunity to activate prior knowledge relating to recycling and its relevance to sustainability. Stimulating recall of relevant knowledge supports students to connect new learning to existing understandings, enabling them to process new content in greater detail. It can also increase engagement in the lesson.

Write the following questionson the whiteboard:

What is recycling?
Why is recycling important?
Can a house be recycled?

Invite students to respond to each question by sharing their thoughts with the person sitting next to them. Next, conduct a class discussion focusing on the final question, "Can a house be recycled?" Invite students to share their thoughts and prompt them to justify their reasoning by asking, “What makes you say that?"

Step 2

Summarise this part of the lesson by reinforcing with students that the goal of recycling is to reduce environmental impact caused by the production of resources and waste going to landfill.

Part B: Recycling a House

Step 1

Project the following video for the class to watch.

Bingo Education (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coryjQCb03U)

Invite the students to discuss the video by asking questions such as:

Where do the materials go once a house has been demolished?
What materials are sorted out to be recycled?
How is this a positive/helpful process?

Step 2

Provide students with the Can You Recycle A House? Worksheet and read through the instructions as a class. Ensure students understand the task by inviting the class to respond with a thumbs up (I understand) or thumbs down (I need more clarification). Support individual students that still need more instruction. Allow enough time for students to complete the worksheet. Once completed, use the Can You Recycle A House? Answers to ensure students have understood the process of recycling materials in a house.

Step 3

As a class explore how recycled materials from construction sites are used and what items could potentially be made from these recycled materials. Project Planet Ark and Bingo Education's factsheet and read as a class, focusing on identifying what products are made from recycled construction and demolition materials.

The products listed are:

road paving materials
reinforced concrete
soil additive
mulch
garden beds
pipe bedding

Show additional examples of products, referring to websites for companies manufacturing recycled products, for example:

https://www.replas.com.au/products/
https://www.recycledconcrete.com.au/material-prices
https://www.craftpak.com.au/recycledrange.php
http://www.nullarbortimber.com.au/recycled-timber.html

Part C: Narrative Writing

Step 1

Highlight for students that they have learnt some new things about recycling, and in this next part of the lesson they will be working on their writing skills.

Explain that the goal for this activity will be to develop a narrative that explores the recycling journey of a product that has come from a demolished house. Explain that it is an expectation that the story contains a non-linear structure. This means it should include a flashback, or a 'look backwards' in time. It should not follow a typical start to finish structure.

Step 2

Refer students to the narrative examples on the Student Worksheet.

Invite students to identify the part of the story which looks back in time or has a flashback. Explain that changing the direction of the narrative can make it more interesting or engaging to the reader. Discuss the importance of ensuring that the flashback or look back in time is kept simple so that the reader does not become confused by it.

Step 3

Students will now plan their own narrative. Direct students to the Narrative Planner on the Student Worksheet. Before completing the template invite students to share their initial ideas with the person sitting next to them. Write the following sentence stems on the board to assist with their discussion:

My narrative will explore the recycling journey of a...
My flash back or look back in time will be about...

Step 4

Students can now work individually to complete the Narrative Planner.

Support: Invite students who have difficulty completing writing tasks at standard Year 5 and 6 level into a focus group. Discuss the Narrative Planner with them and complete together.

Step 5

Once students have completed their planning provide them with some paper to write their narrative. Ensure you allocate an appropriate amount of time for students to complete their narrative.

Support: Students in the support group can take the plans they developed in the group and use these to direct their writing.

Part D: Feedback

Step 1

Invite students to join with a like ability partner. This will ensure they receive feedback suited to their level of capability.

Step 2

Direct students to the Peer Feedback section of the Student Worksheet. Invite them to provide feedback on their partner's narrative.

Reflection

Provide students with time to consider the following questions and conduct a class discussion.

What did I learn about recycling today?
What did I improve in my writing today?
What will I change in my next narrative writing piece?

Differentiated Learning

Extension: Students who easily develop the idea for a sequence of events should be encouraged think about how the experiences of the character link to their growth of a person and how this is shown in the story.

Provisions for Learning Support: Students challenged by the writing task are brought together in a group to develop their plan, before working independently on the writing task.

Considering Social Action

It's always a good time of year to challenge your students to recycle right!

Planet Ark provides free recycling activity guides and Australian school event ideas designed to engage students and teachers to learn by doing and having fun! The Getting Started Guide will help you plan and promote your Schools Recycle Right Challenge activities.

Teacher Reflection

National Recycling Week - Can You Recycle a House? (NAPLAN Writing Practice)

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Summary

Learning intentions:

Students will...

Success criteria:

Students can...

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