Rapid Valley Recyclers Rapid Valley Elementary is currently located outside the city limits of Rapid City. There is no recycling program in place here.

Rapid Valley Recyclers

Rapid Valley Elementary is currently located outside the city limits of Rapid City. There is no recycling program in place here.

These fifth graders decided to do their part to change that…

THE

CHALLEN

GE

RAPID VALLEY NEEDS YOUR PROBLEM SOLVING SKILLS

 • Currently there is no recycling in Rapid

Valley. Every day at Rapid Valley Elementary, students and staff throw away aluminum lunch trays, paper, and plastic, much of which could be recycled. Your task is to focus on one of these materials and find a solution.

You will need to address the following:• How our class will recycle• How our class will help other classes to recycle

• Where we will store recycled material• How we will transport recycled material to place where recycling exists

Students got math data from the lunch room.  They computed daily, weekly and yearly averages.

Then they

 graphed

weekly da

ta for one

month us

ing Create

A Graph!

Students discovered we averagebetween 315 and 325 trays per DAY!

This is what 325 trays looks like!

And they were HORRIFIED to discover that is more than 58,000 trays PER YEAR!

They were SHOCKED to realize that is about 1,600 trays per WEEK.

They were DISMAYED to calculate that isOver 6,000 trays per MONTH.

They decided to

TAKE ACTION…

Do some research, get permission.

After research

ing the proble

m,

and gathering

 data from the

 cafeteria

about daily tra

y use, each stu

dent had 

to apply this n

ew knowledge

 by writing

a letter to the

 principal, cust

odian, or

cafeteria man

ager to get pe

rmission

to recycle.  Th

ey had to sup

port their

letters with ev

idence with o

ne 

paragraph con

taining  inform

ation from 

recycling resea

rch, one parag

raph 

sharing math d

ata from our 

school, and 

one paragraph

 explaining how

 the fifth 

graders would

 do the extra w

ork.

Measurement Activities

Do trays weigh the same as a can?Answer: It takes about 2 trays to equal 1 can.

Students computed how many trays

could fit into various containers by

applying volume.

Our Evolving System

Trays will only be taken by the recycling companies if 

they are CLEAN.

On recycle days, we have a rolling cart  to transportour washing containers from class.We use 1 large tub for prewashing, 2 smaller  tubs for washing,and 1 large tub for rinsing.  4 dryers and1 stacker help to make the process go smoother.

Students Make a PTA Request

2 weeks 

later, the

 PTA

Presiden

t deliver

s their

Request t

o the cla

ss!

Thank You Note to PTA

.

Two students bring supplies to decorate our bin with spray paint. They stay after school to create this MASTERPIECE to make sure no one thinks it is for GARBAGE!

March 14—After contacting the energy director, he delivers recycling bins & recycling dumpster to promote all school recycling!

PTA BINGO NIGHTRECYCLING FOR THE FIRST TIME!!

On March 18, a team of 10 5th Graders RECYCLED aluminum cans and plastic bottles during the PTA Bingo Night. They worked diligently from 5:15-8:00

p.m. and significantly reduced the amount of waste generated!

POSTERS

12 pounds of aluminum cans were collected that night!

Bingo Night Recycling Team SAVES Two Bins Worth of Trash for RECYCLING!

WORK SMARTER NOT HARDER

During the 5th grade lunch, the recycling team had identified meals that were easier to clean that others.  One menu item in particular was amazingly clean. We decided to try the whole school that day by teaching other classes about our process.  Instead of washing the trays, however, we would just stack them.  

A few days before the easiest meal, we did a test run with a fourth grade class on another relatively cleanlunch day.  It went well so we went to individual classes andmodeled the process.  It went well so we found another easy meal and did it again that week.  

We got 17 pounds in two days instead of 12 pounds in ten days!  No washing was involved.

MONEY EARNED

AFTER OUR NEW SYSTEM WITH WHOLE SCHOOLNO WASHING NEEDED

TRIP 1: 3 lbs of foil traysRate: $.15 per poundManager gave us $.25 for being schoolEarnings: $.75 TRIP 2: 12 lbs of foil trays

Rate: $.10 per poundEarnings: $1.2012 lbs of aluminum cansRate: $.58 per poundEarnings: $6.96

TRIP 3: 17 lbs of foil traysRate: $.10 per poundEarnings: $1.70

CANS

AFTER BINGO

NIGHT

Trays collected

over 10 days

during 5th

grade lunch

washing

all.

Students computed totals by multiplying and adding during our number talk timeOn days after trips to recycling. (They help load up the truck on those days.)

$.75 + $1.20 + $6.96 + $1.70 + 10.44= $21.05

TRIP 4: 18 lbs of cans (brought in by 1 student)Rate: $.58 per poundEarnings: $10.44

Trays collected

during small

group testing

phase.

WHERE WILL THE MONEY GO?

• The class is very concerned with those less fortunate.  This year they have raised money for cancer patients and Special Olympics through student council sponsored fundraisers.

• When it came time to how money would be spent, the decision was unanimous.

• The students wanted to help a classmate’s family as the stepmom has a rare form of cancer and has had to have her leg amputated.  Many trips to the Mayo Clinic are necessary. 

• They made a point to have this discussion, however, when this student was gone.  They said, “We shouldn’t tell him, though.”

ECO CHALLENGE GRANT• We entered the Brita FilterforGood Eco Challenge in December.

• We WON!

• We will receive $1,000 at the end of April.

• Since applying, we found venues for items listed on the grant.  We were able to change a few things…

• We will use the funds to promote more recycling at our school, by purchasing supplies such as more bins, banners for recycling drives, etc.

• We will go on a field trip to the city landfill’s recycling center & create a video to educate other kids.

• We will invest in a paddingpress to begin with

NEXT STEPS• Field Trip to Rapid City

Landfill’s Recycling Center as well as Pacific Steel & Recycling where we take our cans and trays. (May 3)

• Using digital cameras and Flipvideo cameras to create a video project!

• Organizing RECYCLING DRIVE near Earth Day (April 29)

• Organizing COMMUNITY CLEAN UP DAY (April 30).

• Recycling at 5th Grade Track Meet

(May 13)

And Then…

PURCHASING A PADDING PRESS TO CREATE TABLETS OF PAPER TO REUSE

FROM COPY PAPER

Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world. For, indeed, that’s all who

ever have. ~Margaret Mead