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Classroom Programs
Have a guest speaker visit your classroom to teach about waste reduction and align with your curriculum through an interactive presentation and activities! The goal is to teach students the problems caused by waste, share solutions to the problems, and empower them to make a positive impact on the planet.
Scroll down to check out the program topics and book one for your class today!
Programs provided by...
- Hamilton County R3Source
- Taught by Elise Roalef, Outreach Specialist for R3Source
- For grades K-12
- Free
- Crystal Clear Science
- Taught by Michelle White, educator and owner of Crystal Clear Science. Contracted by R3Source.
- For grades K-12
- Cost varies depending on whether your school is a member of the Let's Stop Waste at Schools program and if your school is a low-income school.
- Mother's Nature
- Taught by Jane Gonzales, educator and owner of Mother's Nature. Contracted by R3Source.
- For grades PreK-4
- Cost varies depending on whether your school is a member of the Let's Stop Waste at Schools program and if your school is a low-income school.
- Hamilton County R3Source Programs +
- Crystal Clear Virtual Program +
- Crystal Clear In-Person Programs +
- Mother's Nature Virtual Programs +
- Mother's Nature In-Person Programs +
- Keep Cincinnati Beautiful Programs +
Hamilton County R3Source Programs
Cost: FREE
Recycling 101 (Grades K-12)
Learn the what, why, and how of proper recycling.
Natural Resources (Grades 3-6)
Learn where the items that we use in our daily life come from and how we can protect and preserve our natural resources for the wellbeing of our planet and our communities.
Reducing Wasted Food (Grades 2-12)
Nearly 40% of the food produced in the US gets wasted. Learn how we can take simple steps to reduce that number and make a positive impact on our community.
Composting (Grades K-12)
Learn the basic science behind composting and all the benefits that it can provide.
Other
If you are interested in a classroom program but did not see what you were looking for in the options listed above, Elise will work with you to create a program lesson that is right for your students.
Cost: FREE
Length: 30 - 60 minutes
Contact: Email Elise Roalef or call (513) 946-7736
Crystal Clear Virtual Program
STEAM! Powered Recycling (K-12)
This fun and fast-paced STEAM program is filled with experiments guaranteed to inspire and inform. Kids learn how electromagnets separate steel, eddy currents separate aluminum and light helps separate plastics. Metal and plastic are melted, remolded, and cooled in front of their eyes. Math demonstrates the costs and savings of recycling. Electrical generators and Tesla coils teach energy use and changes in memorable demonstrations. Examples of the "art" in upcycling projects encourage kids to be creative! The discussion of renewable and sustainable alternatives reinforces core standards in technology and the impact of humans on the environment. This program's memorable demonstrations reinforce big science ideas across grade levels.
Cost: $97.50 for schools registered with Let's Stop Waste at Schools (LSW); $10 for low-income LSW schools.
*Please note that there is limited funding available to cover the cost of Crystal Clear programming. Book as far in advance as possible!
Length: 45 minutes
Contact: Email Crystal Clear Sciences or call 513-828-9944.
Crystal Clear In-Person Programs
Perilous Plastics (K-12)
This in-person, hands-on program teaches kids the rules of recycling plastic. It also covers the physical properties of matter and includes great reuse activity ideas.
Compost Matters (K-12)
Students will learn about the importance of composting and why it has a positive impact on the environment. They will discuss natural resources and their connection with protecting the planet. Teachers will receive a guide that helps everyone make less food waste to begin with!
Paper Capers (K-12)
Students will learn in-person about the importance of the entire recycling loop: buy things that can be recycled, recycle them, and purchase goods made from recycled products. They will also participate in a paper recycling demonstration.
Recycling Rules (K-12)
This in-person hands-on program teaches students the science of solids, liquids and gases while teaching how recyclables are sorted at the facility. Students learn the properties of objects as they use physical properties to separate a mixture that contains the resources used to make glass, plastic, paper and aluminum.
Cost: $112.50 for schools registered with Let's Stop Waste at School; $10 for low-income schools registered with LSW.
*Please note that there is limited funding available to cover the cost of Crystal Clear programming. Book as far in advance as possible!
Length: 45 minutes
Contact: Email Crystal Clear Sciences or call 513-828-9944
Mother's Nature Virtual Programs
Composting: Let It Rot (PreK-4)
Students will learn about what makes great compost, and then get to role-play creating their own compost pile. Students must deduce what processes need to occur in order for them to remain a viable "microhabitat." Then, working in small groups, students "dissect" compost, sorting, classifying, and charting what they find. A rousing chorus of "Dirt Made My Lunch" helps reinforce that composting is important for everyone.
Recycling: Where Does Our Garbage Go? (PreK-2)
Students will learn about recycling by making recycled paper, playing the trash-sorting game, singing songs and role-playing "The Wartville Wizard" by Don Madden.
Cost: $50 for schools registered with the Let's Stop Waste at School program; $10 for low-income schools registered with LSW; $100 for schools not registered with LSW (must be within 60 miles of Loveland, Ohio).
*Please note that there is limited funding available to cover the cost of Mother's Nature programming. Book as far in advance as possible!
Length: 45 minutes.
Contact: Email Mother's Nature or call 513-607-4123.
Mother's Nature In-Person Programs
Composting: Let it Rot (PreK-4)
Students will learn in-person about what makes great compost, and then get to role-play creating their own compost pile. Students must deduce what processes need to occur in order for them to remain a viable "microhabitat." Then, working in small groups, students "dissect" compost, sorting, classifying, and charting what they find. A rousing chorus of "Dirt Made My Lunch" helps reinforce that composting is important for everyone.
Recycling: Where Does Our Garbage Go? (PreK-2)
Students will watch a brief puppet show about recycling, make recycled paper, sing songs about recycling, and much more!
Cost: $50 for schools registered with the Let's Stop Waste at School program; $10 for low-income schools registered with LSW; $100 for schools not registered with LSW (must be within 60 miles of Loveland, Ohio).
*Please note that there is limited funding available to cover the cost of Mother's Nature programming. Book as far in advance as possible!
Length: 45 minutes
Contact: Email Mother's Nature or call 513-607-4123 .
Keep Cincinnati Beautiful Programs
Cost: FREE
Compost Stew (K-8)
We will read the book "Compost Stew" and follow along by creating our own batch of "compost." Students will learn how the earth recycles and why it's important for us to do things, like compost, to reduce the amount of waste we create.
Paper Recycling (K-8)
Students learn where paper comes from, its history, its future and why recycling paper is beneficial to the environment. Then they will operate their own paper recycling factory and produce recycled paper right in your classroom.
Eco-Art (2-8)
After a brief review and discussion of the three R's, children will tap into their creative side to explore the reuse leg of the reduce-reuse-recycle triangle. We'll put into practice the concept of reuse through craft-making from an item usually destined for the landfill, which students get to take home! We provide the craft materials but request each class supply its own glue, scissors, and crayons or markers.
Recycle This! (2-8)
This program involves a discussion about natural resources from which different kinds of packaging are made, our ability to recycle packaging as well as its biodegradability (or lack thereof). We'll demonstrate how recycling our packaging saves resources, landfill space, and energy. The program concludes with a game in which students practice sorting their recyclables for curbside collection.
The Mystery of Landfills (3-8)
What happens to our trash after it is picked up at the curbside? What is the difference between a dump and a sanitary landfill? How are landfills designed to minimize the effects on solid waste disposal on our environment? Using a model of a landfill to visually depict the components of its design we will discuss the answers to these and other questions.
Cost: FREE
Contact: Email Kara Luggen or call Kara at 513-352-4386.
