The recycling match activity is for students to learn what types of items are recyclable and non-recyclable. Begin by educating fourth-graders about recycling and identify what types of items can be recycled. Build the activity by printing out of a list of items that combine recyclable and non-recyclable materials. Examples of recyclable materials include glass jars, plastic bottles, soda cans and pieces of cardboard, while examples of non-recyclable materials are Styrofoam and plastic bags. Paste the list to one side of a blank file folder. On the other side of the file folder, draw a picture of a garbage can and a recycle bin. Fourth-graders shall draw a line from the recyclable or non-recyclable item to one of the waste disposal bins depending on whether they think the item can be recycled or not.
Teach fourth-graders about the global warming phenomenon and follow up your lesson with a print folder activity. For the activity, print out a global warming crossword puzzle and clues that students need to fill in. Paste the crossword puzzle printout onto a folder. You can ask clue questions such as "Global warming affects the ____" and "Global warming makes the average _____ of the planet warmer." This environmental activity is effective for bringing awareness to the facts about global warming and climate change.
After your lesson about environmental issues, create a game board using a flattened file folder. On the inner folder, draw a connected series of one-inch boxes in a snakelike pattern, with a start point and an end point. Use a green highlighter to color in 75-percent of the square boxes on the board. Students shall play a trivia game using figurines and dice. The figurines begin at the starting square and players roll the dice to see how many squares to move forward. If the player lands on a green square, she must answer an environmental trivia question from a deck of trivia cards that the teacher or parent creates. If the player provides an incorrect answer, she is sent back to start. The player who reaches the end square first wins the game.
Print out an environmental list of items for a scavenger hunt and paste the list to the inside of a file folder. Fourth-graders will carry around their file folders and refer to the list inside to check items off. For an environmental-themed scavenger hunt, you might include items such as "something recyclable," "something non-recyclable," "piece of litter" and "electricity left on when not in use." The items on the list should correspond with the types of environmental lessons you give to the fourth-graders first. Allow fourth-graders to roam around the school campus or your neighborhood with your supervision and then hold a discussion about the items they found.