Today, November 15, is America Recycles Day, which is the perfect opportunity to teach kids about the importance of recycling. As any parent or childcare professional will tell you, early childhood education is about so much more than learning to read and write. It’s also about learning to live in the world around us. We often think of that as learning social skills, but it’s also about learning to be a good citizen and good neighbor. Recycling is a simple way to help care for the planet, and it’s never too early to get the kids involved!
Teach kids the importance of recycling this America Recycles Day! Have a look at these recycling FAQs that you can use to incorporate recycling into early childhood education.
How Does Your Town Recycle?
Every town has different rules and procedures for recycling. Some towns handle it all at the dump or transfer station, while others offer pickup like they do for regular trash. Additionally, some towns do no-sort recycling, so everything goes in one bin, and others require you to separate the different materials. Finding out how your town recycles is a great place to start if you want to teach your kids about recycling.
How Many Ways Are There to Recycle?
If your family’s relationship with recycling is just putting the bin at the end of the driveway every week, you may not know that there’s more than one type of recycling. In fact, there are three. First, we have primary recycling. This process recycles materials back into the same materials. Recycled paper becomes new paper, plastic bottles become more bottles, and so on. Secondary recycling turns recycled materials into something new. Plastic lawn furniture made of recycled plastic bottles or playground turf made from rubber tires are common examples of secondary recycling. Finally, we have tertiary recycling. This process transforms a product into something new and usable through a chemical process.
How Can You Recycle More in Your Home?
Now that you know a little more about recycling, the next step is to find ways to recycle in your home. If you don’t already participate in your town’s recycling program, that’s a great place to start! From there, you can make an effort as a family to purchase recycled and recyclable products. Next time you are out shopping with your kids, show them the symbols and words to look for on various products to see what’s recyclable and what’s made from recycled materials. Take your commitment to recycling a step further by reusing items you would normally throw away. Whether that’s repurposing cardboard for craft projects, reusing takeout containers, or something else, there are countless ways to recycle more at home!
