Recycling, waste & caring for Earth

1. What natural soil conditioner is made when kitchen fruit and vegetable scraps and fallen leaves rot down in a garden bin: compost or plastic?

2. Why should used household batteries and old electronics be taken to a special collection point rather than thrown in ordinary rubbish: they contain metals and chemicals that can leak into soil and water, or they float away?

3. What do we call a protected area of land or sea set aside by law so wild plants and animals can live safely without being hunted or destroyed: a nature reserve (marine park) or a factory?

4. Why is plastic litter especially harmful when it blows or washes into the ocean: plastic takes hundreds of years to break down and marine animals can mistake it for food or get tangled in it, or plastic dissolves into fresh water?

5. What should you do before putting an empty glass jar or plastic milk bottle into the recycling bin: rinse it out so food residue does not spoil the paper and cardboard recycling, or smash it on the floor?

6. How does planting trees in a community or along a shoreline help the environment: tree roots hold soil in place and leaves absorb carbon dioxide while releasing oxygen, or trees block the rain?

7. Which of these items belongs in a garden compost bin rather than the plastics bin: banana peels and dry leaves, or a glass bottle?

8. What does the word “biodegradable” mean: capable of being broken down naturally by bacteria, fungi and other living decomposers, or made of steel?

9. Which of the Three Rs means turning used materials (like old newspapers, glass jars or aluminium cans) into brand-new products: Recycle or Burn?

10. Instead of throwing out clothes or storybooks you have outgrown that are still in good condition, what is a sustainable choice: donate or pass them on to younger learners, or burn them?

11. What simple habit saves clean drinking water at home every morning and evening: turning off the tap while brushing your teeth, or leaving the hose running?

12. Which of the Three Rs means using less of something in the first place (such as turning off a tap while brushing your teeth): Reduce or Recycle?