In 2021, the world generated 57.4 million tonnes of e-waste. The amount of e-waste is expected to grow by 2.5 million tonnes per year for the next 20 years. Only a small percentage of all this e-waste gets recycled. The majority of it will end up in incinerators and worse, in landfills where toxic chemicals from the e-waste will leaked into our water supplies. A true ecological nightmare!
This design challenge encourages kids to apply their creativity to identify ways to recycle and re-use e-waste. It also allows you to open up new conversations about the impact of our electronic equipment consumption on the environment. Let's dig deeper into this e-waste problem together.
Get a Free Creative Classroom Checklist
Plus new creative classroom activity ideas every week when you subscribe to our newsletter.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Printable & Activity Objectives
💡
Age: 6 to 9 year olds, Activity Time: 1-2 hours, Items Needed: Colour pencils
In this activity, your child will learn about the world's growing e-waste problem and start thinking of ways to reducing, repurposing and recycling e-waste. Of course, they will also have lots of fun, designing robots :)
It will help your child or student:
Develop a deeper understanding of the complex environmental issues tied to their electronic device purchases and consumption.
Foster greater creativity and imagination through developing and piecing together e-waste components to make something new.
Let the building begin!
Classroom Resources
Simple steps to start:
Research and find out more about the world's e-waste problem and how it affects out environment and the people living in poorer countries. Here's a quick introduction video which explains all of this in under 2 minutes.
Find out more about how communities in poorer nations are repurposing, recycling and even innovating new products from the e-waste sold and dumped in their countries.
The following video is an excellent example of how the community in the world's largest e-waste scrapyard in Ghana are giving new life to the e-waste gathering there (This video is probably slightly too complicated for younger children but worth the watch if they can sit through it).
Share this Teaching Resource
What's in the Printable Worksheet Pack
This printable pack consists of 8 printable worksheets with different prompted design challenges featuring an assortment of common electronic devices you can find in your home.
Click on the download link below to get started. Please note that this printable pack is only for subscribers and paid members.
Subscribe for free to download this printable
Sign up now to get access to printables for subscribers only.
