Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: How much waste?

20 minutes

Find Out: Waste trends over time

25 minutes

Take Action: Inspire change, reduce waste

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

analyse real-world data about waste in Australia
identify data trends over a time period

Success criteria

Students can:

identify a meaningful pattern in the data and make a logical prediction
choose the best type of graph (bar or line) to show a trend
present statistical information in a way that informs and inspires others.

Tune In: How much waste?

Step 1

Start by displaying a photo from your school’s Clean Up event, especially if it shows the collected waste being weighed. If an image is not available, use the Visual Explainer to spark a discussion about the types of waste collected.

Ask students:

Why do you think it's important to measure and record rubbish?
How could this information be useful?
What can waste data tell us about our impact?
How can we best share what we’ve learned with others?

Suggested responses to help prompt discussion:

It helps us know how much waste we are creating, so we can try to reduce it.
By recording the rubbish, we can see if we are improving over time.
It helps us make smarter decisions about recycling and looking after the environment.
We can use the data to set goals, like reducing litter by 50% next term.
When we collect and share data, we can influence others to care more about waste and join in the effort to reduce it.
Waste data can be used to challenge others to get more people involved in helping the environment.

Find Out: Waste trends over time

Step 1

Clean Up Australia collects data to produce annual litter reports. Scroll through the CUA Litter Report 2024 - Litter Report to demonstrate what type of data is collected and how the report presents it. Select three other Fact sheets to display from your home state from 2019 - 2024.

Explain that these fact sheets provide a breakdown of the waste collected as part of Clean Up Australia Day and Every Day Clean Ups. The data is categorised by:

types of litter recorded
site type - where the litter is found.

Explain that reading the data across subsequent years can help to reveal waste patterns over time.

Step 2

Demonstrate how to collate data from 2019 - 2024. For this demonstration, choose a state other than your home state and access the fact sheets from 2019 - 2024 for that state.

Choose a data set. For example, you might look at what percentage of the total waste collected in Victoria was soft plastic. Next, find the percentage for each year (e.g., 2023 – 42.9%) and record this information in a table, as per the example below.

Percentage of Victoria’s Waste that was Soft Plastic

Year	Percentage
2019	Not recorded as a category
2020	11%
2021	17%
2022	21%
2023	42.9%
2024	35.2%

Then show students how to create a graph based on the table using spreadsheet software (e.g. Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel: see example below).

Ask students to select a data set featured in the fact sheets related to their own state or territory. Instruct them to organise the data in a table, then create a line graph or bar chart that clearly presents the data and highlights any trends over time. Encourage them to consider which type of graph is most suitable for representing the data.

Learning support: Work on the same data set with a small group of students. Help them step-by-step to record the data in a table and create a simple line graph.

Learning extension: Students compare data from their home state or territory with data from a different state or territory. Does this change the type of graph they use? Encourage students to analyse and infer reasons for any similarities or differences in any patterns or trends they observed. Prompt them to consider factors such as population size, geography, climate, policies, or local events.

Step 3

Using the data students collated from the National Factsheets 2019 - 2024 guide them to complete Questions 1 and 2 on the Studen t Worksheet.

Take Action: Inspire change, reduce waste

Step 1

In small groups, ask students to think about what changes they would like to inspire others to make based on their findings. Each student chooses one meaningful change they would like to promote to inspire others.

Step 2

Ask students to create a digital communication piece, such as a slideshow, infographic or digital poster, that presents their findings in a clear and engaging way. Explain that this piece should combine visuals, data, and written explanations to inform and influence others.

Use the infographic below to model how to present information visually and concisely in a digital communication piece.

Encourage students to choose a format that suits their strengths and allows them to communicate their message most effectively. The final product should be suitable for sharing with the school community (e.g. at assembly, on a digital bulletin board, or via the school website).

Use the checklist to guide students to present their data clearly and make meaningful recommendations for action.

Infographic Checklist

☐ A clear title that explains what the project is about

☐ A graph that accurately shows your data (with title, labels, and correct scale)

☐ A data analysis summary that includes:

☐ At least 1 measure of centre (mean, median or mode)

☐ At least 1 measure of spread (range or IQR)

☐ An explanation of what the data shows

Recommendations:

☐ At least two specific actions students or the community can take that are clearly linked to your data findings

Visual design:

☐ Eye-catching layout with images, colour, or icons

☐ Text is clear, concise, and easy to follow

Teacher note: For students wanting to share beyond their wider community, final pieces should be sent to education@cleanup.com.au prior to sharing to avoid any unintended misinformation.

Step 3

Form a student action team to organise a Clean Up event. Students can create QR codes to display around the school in the lead-up to Clean Up Australia’s Schools Clean Up Day in March or World Clean Up Day in September, linking to their communication pieces to inform and encourage the school community to participate. Register your Clean Up with Clean Up Australia for a free Clean Up kit and materials.

Reflection

Reflect on the lesson with these prompts. Lead a class discussion in which students are invited to share their responses and record on their Student Worksheet:

How does your data encourage people to change their behaviours?
When analysing litter trends, is the mean or median more representative of the data? Why?

Suggested responses to help promote reflection:

The data shows evidence of how much waste we are producing, which can make people realise the impact of their actions.
By sharing the data, we can inspire others to join in making positive changes in their daily habits.
In this case, the median is usually more representative because it shows the middle value and is less affected by extreme amounts of litter on certain days.
Very high or very low values can skew the mean, which might not represent typical litter amounts.
Both mean and median can be useful depending on what we want to understand about the litter trends.

Using Waste Data to Forecast our Footprint

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Lesson Guides and Printables

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Using Waste Data to Forecast our Footprint

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Summary

Lesson Guides and Printables

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