Project Ideas

Here are some activities your students might enjoy. Loan Application: Have students go through the process of applying for a loan. You might wish to invite a financial advisor from a local bank or trust company to visit the class and discuss whether or not the loan would be granted and why or why not as well as the whole issue of credit worthiness. Career Plan: Have students develop a "career plan" much as they might develop a "business plan." For example, what are their goals? What do they want out of a career? What are the opportunities that interest them the most? What specific career ideas would they put on a short list? How would they research to narrow the possibilities so they could pick their most favourite? What would be needed in their plan to make it possible to pursue the career objective selected? And so on. Challenge students to identify all the "entrepreneurial opportunities" they can find in the local community, evaluate them, and select the best one. Have each student briefly present his or her "best opportunity." List them all. Discuss them as a class and pick the overall best one. Go Hollywood: Ask students to identify major movies that focus on or illustrate something about money. Challenge them to find examples of wise decisions, poor decisions, and clear lessons. Ask students to bring in one selected movie and play an excerpt. Discuss the point illustrated in the excerpt. Discuss the role of movies and television in influencing people's views of money and money issues. Poverty: Assign the topic of poverty for student research. How is poverty defined? Who are "the poor"? What are the causes of poverty? What are the consequences of poverty? What is being done to help alleviate poverty? What stands in the way of those trying to escape poverty? The Stock Market: As a class, monitor the performance of the stock market over the course of a week, a couple of weeks, or a month. Discuss the changes in "the market" and the reasons for them. Ask students to bring in current, relevant articles, along with their questions, to discuss specific companies, issues, and so on that have affected changes in the stock market. Follow movements in the daily prices of a few selected stocks, and discuss each day the reasons why those price changes may have occurred. Job Interview: Conduct simulated job interviews with selected students role-playing prospective candidates. Entrepreneurial Potential: Have students write a personal report, entitled "My Entrepreneurial Potential," discussing their interest in, and abilities related to,

entrepreneurship. Refer to the following web sites for help in assisting students with exploring their potential.

Are you ready for the demands of an entrepreneurial career? This resource will help you determine your ability to handle the stress. http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/SSG/mi02602e.html Check your entrepreneurial potential online at Entreworld. http://interactive.wsj.com/public/current/articles/SB868575617418206500.htm If you really want to get into a detailed self-assessment quiz, try this one. It covers 74 questions, with a complete debriefing. It also offers a chance for you to assess your business management skills, your personal financial situation, and your eligibility for loans or other forms of financing. http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/SSG/mi02602e.html If you are considering starting a home-based business, you may want to try this assessment resource that was designed especially for anyone planning to operate a home-based business. http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/SSG/mi01365e.html

The Workplace: Assemble a panel of local employers to speak to students about the changing nature of the workplace. Prepare a wallboard where students can post articles related to conditions and changes in the workplace. Budget Realities: Ask students to use the sample budget in Money and Youth (p. 77) to develop a list of what they think their expenses are each month. Then have them monitor their expenses for two to three months and compare their actual spending with their estimates. Moving Out: Ask students to estimate what their monthly costs would be if they moved out to live on their own. Then have students work out a detailed monthly budget based on gathering real living costs in their community (e.g., rent, utilities, food, transportation). Good Buys: Give each student the same list of items. Challenge each student to find the best price for each item listed. They have to find the items in the local community and indicate the seller and date on which the item was priced. Determine which student can come up with the lowest total cost and which student found, or negotiated, the lowest price for each individual item. Net Worth: Have each student submit an estimate of the average net worth of the students in the class. Then have each student estimate his/her own net worth based on the value of things they own (e.g., bike, books, skateboard, CDs, clothes, CD players) minus what they owe and hand it in on an unsigned piece of paper. Then calculate the average net worth of the students in the class and see which original estimate came closest.

Stock Market Game: As a class, participate in the Wilfrid Laurier University "Stock Market Competition." Obtain information on the competition from the following source: Wilfrid Laurier University Business Economics Training Aids (BETA) 75 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3C5 Tel: (519) 884-1970 ext. 6581 Fax: (519) 886-9351 E-mail: srung@wlu.ca Web site: http://invest.wlu.ca Government Assistance: As a class, research all the sources of information related to financial assistance available to youth (e.g., loans, grants, scholarships, income support programs). Pick a Bank: Divide students into groups. Ask each group to develop a set of criteria to guide their choice of a financial institution that would best meet their needs. Using this criteria, each group should check out the various local banking alternatives, and then make a presentation on the institution it would choose and why. Pick a Card: Related to the above activity, ask students to decide which kind of credit card and from which institution they would pick and to provide a clearly stated rationale for their choice. Get It Cheap: Ask students, as a class, to make a list of items that they will most need/want over the next five years. Have them research the Internet, buying guides, and so forth to make a list of all the ways and sources they can try to get things (e.g., clothes, travel, CDs, food, books, school supplies, movie tickets) at a reasonable perhaps great price.

School Projects And Ideas For Students

The following are some ideas to help schools go trash-free, including student art, writing, and science projects involving learning about garbage reduction, material reuse, recycling, and compost.

Basic Trash Reduction

Trash Sorting Awareness

Collect one large bag or a few small bags of trash from home or school campus. Separate the litter into 3 piles, one for garbage, one for items that could have been recycled, and one for items which could have been composted (hopefully you won't need an additional 4th pile for things which could have been reused or fixed rather than discarded). Weigh

and find the volume of each pile to quantify the amount of waste which could have been better disposed of. Make a poster (on recycled paper) to display near school trash cans listing commonly mis-trashed items to educate and remind the rest of the school on how to better sort their trash. Community Recycling Awareness and Promotion

Do a survey of people and businesses in the community to find out what percentage of the population recycles mixed paper, newspaper, plastic, metal, and glass. Prepare a short informational flyer detailing why you think recycling is important and a local recycling chart to distribute to the people and businesses that don't currently recycle. Tracking and Reducing Trash Output - Class or Small Group Project

1. On Monday, equip each student and teacher with a pocket-sized pencil and paper notepad. For 4 days, each person writes down every little thing they throw in the trash, both at school and at home. 2. On Friday, students gather as a class or small group for a two-part discussion. First everyone gets a chance to share their garbage list. Second the group brainstorms some alternative things they could have bought, items they could have avoided using, and ways they could have reused items rather than discard them, etc. 3. Over the weekend, project participants have the chance to prepare anything they might need to help them change trash-making behavior for the next week. Then MondayThursday are spent attempting to use the brainstormed trash alternatives and again keeping lists of anything thrown out. 4. On Friday, the groups reconvene to share their reduced trash lists and discuss the successes and failures of their 4 days of trash reduction efforts. It's important to discuss why some things were easier to change than others. Note: This project could be expanded to include documenting recycling and composting, or compressed into a shorter project by spending only a day or two documenting. Brainstorming and Presenting Trash Alternatives - Small Group or Individual Project

Gather bags from cafeteria and/or other non-bathroom campus trash cans. Empty out the bags onto old newspaper or any protected surface and have students pick through the trash (wearing gloves), documenting what they find. Then brainstorm possible ways someone could have avoided making each kind of trash, by modifying their buying habits, by reuse, or by avoiding using disposable materials, etc. After brainstorming, they can present their garbage alternative suggestions to the rest of the student body or class.

Infrastructure Improvement Projects

Recycling

Designate space for dual-tier recycling for paper in areas of the school which create large or blank-sided waste paper (computer rooms, art rooms) so that larger pieces can be reused and scrap pieces can be recycled. Talk to teachers about allowing essays and reports to be printed on the back sides of previously used paper. Post directions for

students about how to correctly load a printer with reusable paper - which drawer to open, which side up the paper should go in, etc. Encourage art classes to reuse paper for all drafts and perhaps some final projects, depending on the materials. Compost

Build a compost system outside near the cafeteria and provide clearly labeled collection bins for non-meat food scraps from student lunches and cafeteria cooking waste. Place one each, conveniently located, for cooking staff and for students. The scraps bin accessible to the general student body should be small and of a unique shape and color so that it doesn't look like somewhere to dump trash, and it should also be placed very conveniently next to a main cafeteria trash can so students with a lot of other things on their minds can easily sort their lunch waste without really thinking about it or making a mess. For more information about composting in schools visit Composting in Schools. The site has many helpful pages, including schematics for outdoor composting and ideas for related student science projects For older students teaching younger kids &emdash; a 3-step project: 1. Begin with a working compost bin and a group of kids who have a basic understanding of how composting works. They will provide a peer learning opportunity for others, and will solidify their own knowledge and build confidence. Have this core student group visit the compost bin with a teacher or other compost-savvy person and have the students practice explaining how the system works. Attempting to explain will flush out any uncertainties they might have about the processes. This is a great opportunity to clear up any misunderstandings. Also have them brainstorm questions that younger kids might have and practice answering them. 2. Next, the students write and illustrate story books about the life cycle of a compostable food item such as an apple core or banana peel, including how the food came to become waste, the story of how it decays in the compost box and what the different creatures in there and water and heat do to help that process, and how the soil that it turns into can be used to grow more food. 3. Finally, the students break out into small groups with their elementary school buddies and read them their stories, then go out and tour the school compost bins and talk about how what they see in the bins correlates to what happened in the story books they just read. Paper Towel Use Habits

Design and post official signs near paper towel dispensers in restrooms reminding people that using one paper towel is sufficient Back to Nature

Find a little-used corner of campus and relandscape it with native plants appropriate for the specific location and micro-climate. Try to choose plants that will provide food, shelter, and nesting security for native birds, mammals, and insects you want to attract.

Keeping Clean

Divide the school grounds into sections, and assign each class the task of keeping one area litter free. Give the most difficult areas to older grade levels. Have weekly competitions with the prize going to the class who's section was the cleanest. Rewards for winning should not themselves be anything that produces garbage (special priveleges can work well as rewards).

Science Projects

Find out if mixing compost into soil helps plants grow stronger and healthier. Collect multiple seeds from several species of fast-growing plants. Plant half of the seeds of each species in regular potting soil and the other half in the same kind of soil which has had compost mixed into it. Grow the plants under conditions of equal light, heat, and water exposure. When the seedlings are all well established, compare the height, stem thickness, and root structure of the plants. Research a product's history and future - material sources, manufacturing, transportation, use, potential reuse or recycling, decomposition properties - example products: piece of paper, plastic bag, toothbrush, can of coke, loaf of bread, compact disc, water bottle Compare decomposition processes required to break down organics, plastics, metals, chemicals Research recyclability of different materials - paper, plastic, glass, metal, styrofoam potentially concluding with a presentation to the rest of the student body using physical examples of the different types of products within each material category (for example, showing the difference between #1 and #5 plastics) Study the processes in a school compost bin - for several ideas visit Research Ideas provided by Cornell University. Compare the durability of paper made from recycled and virgin materials. For a fair trial, test paper made with different percentages of recycled content by the same manufacturer, then repeat the test with other manufacturers - Some paper companies may use a better technique for bonding fibers or may source their recycled content from paper that originally has shorter or longer fibers. Set up a still to recycle fermented organic waste (from cafeteria garbage or at home) into a grade of ethyl alcohol that could be used as a fuel to offset some of a building's energy needs.

Food and Cooking Projects

Inventory the packaged foods available for purchase at school and research alternatives that can be bought in bulk or don't come individually wrapped Cook snack food substitutes for snacks that usually come individually wrapped Recipes for granola bars (use rice crispies and mini chocolate chips for deserttype snacks or oats, dried fruits and nuts for healthier bars)
o

Easy granola bars

Chewy granola bars Recipes for chips

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Corn tortilla chips Potato chips Recipes for candy

LollipopsThis recipe needs modification to actually be trash-free, try pouring mixture into greased mini ice cube tray to make small candies instead of lollipops, and store them in tins after dusting them with confectioners' sugar rather than rolling them in plastic Butterscotch candy

Art Projects

Create "found art" pieces only using items that can no longer be used for their original purpose Make instruments out of salvaged parts of old, broken items - bikes, computers, toys, bottles and cans, construction materials, clothing, non-recyclable metal and plastic lids Paper-making using pre-used scrap paper or old newspapers Painting assignment using only paint from containers which are mostly empty encourages creativity for finding ways to make something interesting with the less popular colors and saves paints from being wasted by drying inside the container

Math Projects

Calculate the school's current waste output - measure approximate volumes of the campus trash cans, interview maintenance staff to find out how full they get and how often they get emptied Inventory the number and size of foods sold individual wrapped on campus and calculate how many square feet of wrappers are currently available for purchase Compare the amount of packaging materials used for food or other things that you can buy both in bulk and in more convenient packages. Measure the volume or weight to package surface area of different products or foods. Take into account that some package types may have multiple layers of packaging, may use plastic within paper packaging, or may hide significant volumes of air. Find an area of the school campus which has a lot of litter and an easily accessible trash can. After discussing trash safety and while wearing gloves, pick up all the litter in that area. Separate and count the different types of trash, and make a graph to show the data. Do the same for a bag of trash pulled from a garbage bin located in the same area as the litter pickup. Compare the graphs and discuss why you think some types of garbage are more likely to end up as litter. Then brainstorm and implement a plan to make it easier or more compelling for people to correctly dispose of all trash.

Writing and History Projects

Compose letters to local politicians requesting improved recycling facilities and recycling education for the general public Research the evolution of waste management practices in your city, region, or country over the last 100 years Research resource use by pre-industrial civilizations to study the creative ways they efficiently used all parts of plants and animals. Then present a few modern day examples of how you think we could better use our resources (ex: saving nut shells for use as garden mulch, packing material, or art projects; or reusing glass jars for food storage or portable drinking cups). Write a poem or short story about what inspires you to want to be less wastefull. Write a science fiction story about a future with no trash - be sure to explain in which ways the people of the future live differently so they don't end up making garbage.

Sewing Projects

Learn how to patch holes in pants, darn sweaters and socks, and securely reattach buttons and backpack straps Make a quilt or shoulder bag out of worn-out jeans or other clothing

Field Trips

Tour a recycling facility Tour a waste water treatment facility

Teaching Materials

Download or order free environmental education teaching materials from the EPA

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