Last week a couple of students from Bath University, who are participating in a module called: “Engaging the Public in Chemistry,” approached me with their end of year project… and it is so cool that I had to share it on to you all and I Am hoping that you will share it on too.
This is a link to their project… Project Next Gen
They have created a half an hour interactive video all about the plastics that one might unknowingly use in a day. They say it is aimed at Middle Schoolers… age 11 up, our whole family watched it, and learned from it… so it is really good for all ages and stages, particularly folk that interested in environmental issues. It is an absolutely fantastic resource for explaining to folks just how much plastics we use in a day and a whole lot more. Plastics serve a very useful purpose in our lives, it is time to start thinking about ways we can replace them, to do that we need to know how plastics are made and how could improve the manufacturing process…
Professor Emily is the narrator and introduces folk that they have interviewed and discoveries they have made and learned about as they created this project. She also teaches folk about plastics, what they are made of, and what we can use to create them that are not necessarily fossil fuels. She explains the science of plastic… in a really easy to understand and engaging way.
The video is half an hour long, it is engaging and asks interactive questions, to get you thinking about the choices that you make, which is a great way to keep young viewers watching. I think what impressed us the most that instead of just saying that we need to make wise decisions, like “Re-fuse, Re-use or Recycle,” this team of students has realised that plastic is hear to stay, it is a useful substance, but if we start making good decisions at the manufacturing level, we could change the future of plastic. changing from a product that lasts forever, to one that bio-degrades is a good place to start.
The video introduces:
- Plastics and their Properties
- The Impact of Plastic Production and Pollution
- Plastic Alternatives and Recycling Methods
- A more Sustainable, Circular Economy
- Positive Changes that are in Place Already.
The video also follows a “day-in-the-life” of a young student called Rick and shows you many ways that he uses plastic in his everyday, while he makes loads of great choices there are many ways that we use plastic that we may not even be aware of, for instance did you know that your sheets may contain plastics?
What we really liked about the video is that it stays positive throughout… these are the decisions we make every day, but could we make wiser decisions? The pros and cons of plastic, and how we can make much better choices is an ongoing issue, for example, did you know that there are more disposable masks in the ocean than jelly fish. That is just an avoidable tragedy.
Gotta love students, they have done great work here. Please share their project on before the end of April, and let them know how much you enjoyed their project.
Project Next Gen
Recently Published Books To Help YOur Kids Understand the Plastic Problem
You can read our review and see inside What a Waste at this link here.
Be Plastic Clever by Amy and Ella Meek, The Kids against Plastic Sisters, is an incredible read and anyone who wants to know about plastic pollution and what they can actually do about the problem can follow Kids Against Plastic here. They have loads of resources for teaching you and your kids about the plastic poluution problem.
Please feel free to share this post on, remember the more engagement the better for the students, not to mention there is loads to learn in this video, not just for middle schoolers but for everyone.