Get Cool+
Feature Image

School's Clean Up Australia Day - Let's Talk Trash

PrimaryFoundationYear 1 - 6EnglishScienceHumanities and Social SciencesGeographyBusiness and EconomicsCivics and CitizenshipEnvironmentalBiodiversitySustainability

Go to

These resources are part of the Clean Up Australia Education Resources created in collaboration with Clean Up Australia.

This Foundation–Year 6 unit, Let’s Talk Trash, has been designed to

  • develop students’ understanding of waste and its environmental impact by engaging in hands-on activities such as recording litter, measuring water waste and designing sustainable packaging
  • encourage students to explore the concepts of reduce, reuse and recycle, empowering them to take personal responsibility for their environmental footprint
  • inspire active citizenship and community involvement, motivating students to create anti-litter campaigns, organise Clean Up events and propose strategies for reducing waste locally
  • foster critical thinking and scientific inquiry, guiding students through experiments that explore decomposition rates, recycling effectiveness and waste management strategies
  • promote creativity and problem-solving, enabling students to collaboratively design innovative solutions and campaigns that address waste and litter issues in their communities.

Through collaborative, action-based learning, students will be equipped with the skills and confidence to make informed, sustainable choices, actively contributing to a cleaner environment at school and beyond.

These lessons are deal for participating in Schools Clean Up Day or for a Clean Up event at any time of the year.

Scroll down to explore each lesson or click the download button on the right-hand side of this unit to download the entire unit at once. ✨

Tune In

Thought-provoking lessons featuring questions and activities designed to stimulate students' interest.

Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - My Environmental Footprint
    PrimaryYear 5 - 6ScienceHumanities and Social SciencesGeography
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Flipped Classroom - Tuning Into Waste
    PrimarySecondaryFoundationYear 1 - 10ScienceEnvironmentalRecycling

    Find Out

    Explicit instruction on the topic, increasing in complexity and breadth of knowledge.

    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Cool Questions About Waste And Recycling
    PrimaryYear 3 - 4EnglishScienceHumanities and Social Sciences
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - What's In Your Bin?
    PrimaryYear 5 - 6MathematicsSciencePrimary
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up - Bugging The Litterbugs
    PrimaryFoundationYear 1 - 4ScienceHumanities and Social SciencesGeography
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Waste Breakdown Game
    PrimarySecondaryFoundationYear 1 - 10ScienceEnvironmentalRecycling
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Resourceful Rubbish
    PrimaryYear 3 - 4EnglishScienceHumanities and Social Sciences
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Don't Pay a Packet
    PrimaryYear 3 - 4ScienceHumanities and Social SciencesGeography
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Play the Litterbug
    PrimaryYear 3 - 6EnglishEnvironmentalRecycling
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - It's Just A Drop Experiment
    PrimaryYear 5 - 6MathematicsScienceEnvironmental
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - New From Old
    PrimaryYear 5 - 6ScienceEnvironmentalRecycling
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Buried Waste
    PrimaryFoundationScienceEnvironmentalRecycling
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up - Map The Litter Trail
    PrimaryYear 3 - 6Humanities and Social SciencesGeographyBusiness and Economics

    Take Action

    Contextualising knowledge and inspiring students through real-world examples. These lessons feature stories of inspirational people and organisations making a difference to help bring the learning to life.

    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Environmental Challenge Taking Action!
    PrimarySecondaryFoundationYear 1 - 10EnglishScienceHumanities and Social Sciences
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Getting Involved
    PrimaryFoundationYear 1 - 3Humanities and Social SciencesGeographyCivics and Citizenship
    Feature Image
  • Lesson
  • Free
    Clean Up Australia - Getting Involved With Your School
    PrimaryYear 4 - 6Humanities and Social SciencesGeographyEnvironmental

    In this unit

    Tune In
    Find OutTake Action
    FlagsFlags

    Cool Australia acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land on which we live, learn and work, and pays respect to their Elders past and present, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Cool celebrates the world's oldest living culture and acknowledges that sovereignty was never ceded.

    Cool.org
    PO Box 1062, Windsor,
    Melbourne/Naarm, 3181

    Australia Flag
    Cool.org operates across Australia, in metro, regional and rural areas.
    Cool+ on Instagram - opens in new tabCool+ on Facebook - opens in new tabCool+ on LinkedIn - opens in new tab

    Want to find out more?
    Drop us a line to find out more:

    Donate to Cool!
    Help us keep improving our resources.

    Donate
    About Us
    About us
    Impact
    Contact us
    Partners
    Donate
    Governance
    Events
    Privacy Policy
    Terms and Conditions
    Hope Framework
    Act Framework
    Upgrade to Cool+
    Free Teaching Resources
    Free Professional Learning
    Secondary STEM Professional Learning Plan
    Primary STEM Professional Learning Plan
    Learning Design Methodology
    Subjects
    Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
    Biology
    English
    Geography
    Health and Physical Education
    History
    Humanities and Social Sciences
    Learning Through Literature
    Learning Through Film
    Mathematics
    Science
    The Arts
    Technology
    Educators
    Early Learning
    Primary
    Secondary
    Parents
    Casual Relief Teachers
    Years
    Foundation
    Year 1
    Year 2
    Year 3
    Year 4
    Year 5
    Year 6
    Year 7
    Year 8
    Year 9
    Year 10
    Topics
    Environmental
    Social
    Economic
    Mental Health
    Outdoor learning
    Online safety
    Biodiversity
    Climate Change
    Conservation
    Energy
    Oceans
    Recycling
    Sustainability
    Water
    Human Rights
    Mindfulness and Meditation
    Physical Health
    Design Thinking
    Financial Literacy
    Renewable Energy
    Projects
    Amy’s Balancing Act
    2040 Film
    Beyond the Bushfires
    Australian Native Animals
    Blue: The Film
    Blueback Film
    Bluey-inspired Resources
    Caring for Country
    Clean Up Australia Day
    Climate Literacy Resources
    Cool Burning
    Digital Inclusion
    Digital Licence+ Education Resources
    Disaster Resilience
    Diversity and Inclusion
    Earth Hour
    Embrace Kids
    eSafety for Kids
    Fast Fashion
    Healthy and Safe Relationships Resources
    Jump Rope for Heart
    LifeChanger
    Love Food? Love Bees!
    Meaningful Moments
    MobileMuster Schools Competition
    NAIDOC Week
    National Reconciliation Week
    National Recycling Week
    Net-zero Jobs
    Phonics Resources
    Poverty and Inequality
    Regenerating Australia
    Resilient Australia
    Science Week Education Resources
    School Holiday Resources
    Schools Tree Day Resources
    Some Happy Day Education Resources
    STEM and STEAM Resources
    Stop The Coward Punch
    SugarByHalf Nutrition Resources
    Tackling Racism Through Sport
    Take 3 For The Sea
    The Final Quarter
    The Last Daughter
    The Life You Can Save
    The Olympic Games Resources
    The War on Waste
    Trailblazers Education Resources
    Toyota Dream Car
    Social Emotional Learning Teaching Strategies
    Behaviour and Classroom Management Teaching Strategies
    Harmony Day Teaching Resources
    Literacy Teaching Resources
    Deep Time History Resources
    Teacher Wellbeing
    Superstars of STEM
    International Women's Day
    Self-Esteem and Confidence
    World Mental Health Day
    Earth Day Teaching Resources
    Neuroscience in Education
    Media Literacy and Critical Thinking Teaching Resources