The+Problem+of+Paper+in+Schools+Today

MY BIG IDEA Each day there is a large stack of paper left by the printer of pages printed out but not picked up by students. This paper is put into the recyle bin. How can we reduce that amount of paper? Knowing that even if we reduce the amount of paper wasted, what are some ways we might reuse at the school rather than putting it in a recycle bin in one of our elementary school's parking lot?

INTRODUCTION The use of paper is a direct contributor to the harm of the environment via the destruction of one of our most wonderful natural resources -- trees.


 * Paper is the number one material that is thrown away.


 * For every 100 pounds of trash we throw away, 35 pounds is paper.


 * Paper fills up 30-40% of American landfill space.


 * As paper decomposes in landfills or is burned in incinerators, chemicals from its inks are released into the environment. Source


 * Deforestation is occurring at an alarming rate worldwide, particularly in tropical regions. The World Resources Institute estimated in 1997 that only a fifth of the world's old-growth forests were undamaged, and almost half of these faced immediate threats from logging and development.

Source: http://www.topicsites.com/save-environment/paper-usage-statistics.htm
 * Americans use more than 50 million tons of paper each year, consuming more than 850 million trees.

YOUR CHALLENGE How can Carl Albert High School reduce its carbon footprint by reducing the amount of paper thrown away each day. Develop some questions about what might be causing this excess of unused but now unuseable paper. After answering those questions devise a means of reducing that excess. Develop some ideas about alternate ways we might use the unuseable paper besides discarding in the recycle bins at various schools in the district.

STUDENT ASSESSMENT Students will develop the rubric Once ideas are developed they will be put into use and statistics will be kept on...."how often we have to dump the recycle bin during a specific time period" Things to consider: number of classes using computers to type and print each week. Just look at full weeks of school? Weighing?

COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENT Wikispace

TEAM FORMATION The aides in each hour will become a team.

GUIDING QUESTIONS What is the cause of the excess of unuseable paper generated from copying machines and printers? What can we do to cut down on the excess paper? We know there will still be paper generated that is "extra" in the school environment so what can we do with that here at school besides putting in a recycling bin

GUIDING ACTIVITIES Detective Work /Observation over a period of a week. Research Wikipedia Paper Useage Carbon Footprint Paper Recycling

STUDENT SOLUTIONS Podcast documenting the whole process: the questioning, the investigation and the solution to the Problem of Paper