This section of The Recycle Challenge has four parts. Your teacher may require you to complete all, or fewer parts depending on the time available in your class. Before you begin any part of this process make sure you read and understand the criteria that will be used to evaluate your work.

Part 1 - Exploring Paper Recycling.

1. Answer the questions found on the How is Paper Recycled? research page. Record your answers in your journal.

• How is Paper Recycled?

2. Use the directions provided by your teacher to set up a paper recycling center based on Kindergartner (or other lower school students) technology.
3. Set up paper recycling stations based on those you outlined in your journal that model the different steps in a paper recycling center.
4. Work with the Kindergartners to move them through the paper recycling process. At each station explain how the technology (keep it simple!) has improved the process and increased the efficiency of paper recycling.
5. Have the Kindergartners compare the recycled paper they made to recycled paper that your school uses.
6. Discuss with your class the following question:

• If the Kindergartners represent the early process of low tech paper recycling, how has modern technology improved the process?

Part 2 - Determining how discarded sports shoes might impact the landfill.

1. Use the directions provided by your teacher to create a "bar graph" of how shoes are recycled in your class.
2. Mass the shoes from your class and measure their volume. Imagine that your room is a landfill and consider the following:

• What is the capacity (volume) of your landfill (room).
• If everyone in your classroom threw out the mass and volume of shoes you measured every year, how many years would it take to fill your landfill?
• How many years would it take to fill your landfill if every class at your school threw out a similar mass and volume as your class?

3. Discuss as a class why it might be important to find a use for shoes rather than throwing them out when you outgrow them or wear them out.

Part 3 - Investigating how technology has created a new way to recycle that solves a problem and creates a market.

1. Up until a few years ago, there was no real recycling effort for shoes. A shoe company realized that there was a great untapped resource available in every discarded sport shoe. Follow your teachers directions to learn about how one company has used technology to come up with a new product made from recycled sports shoes.
2. Discuss as a class how technology can improve recycling efforts. Write a class position statement on the importance of technology to recycling. In your position statement include the following:

• How technology has influenced paper recycling.
• How technology can open up new possibilities for recycling.