Year 8 - Citizenship
How is plastic damaging the environment?
What can we do about global problems?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
Using a range of case studies from human rights to fracking and climate action, pupils consider how they can take responsible action to tackle some of the challenges currently facing society.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to describe the environmental impacts of plastic pollution and the challenges in reducing plastic use and propose strategies to reduce plastic waste.
Key Notes
- Plastic pollution harms ecosystems, oceans, and wildlife by causing ingestion and entanglement.
- It can take thousands of years for plastic to break down and so it accumulates in landfills and natural environments.
- The convenience, affordability, and durability of plastic make it difficult to replace.
- Strategies to reduce plastic waste include recycling, cutting single-use plastic and policy change.
Vocabulary To Learn
- plastic: an artificial material mostly made from oil or natural gas which can be moulded and shaped
- pollution: when harmful substances or waste are released into the environment, causing damage to nature and living creatures
- recycling: the process of collecting and turning used materials into new products
- sustainable: using resources and making choices in a way that does not harm the environment
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- There are no alternatives to plastic.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the lesson in two key points.
Plastic pollution harms ecosystems, oceans, and wildlife by causing ingestion and entanglement. It can take thousands of years for plastic to break down and so it accumulates in landfills and natural environments.
2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'plastic'
an artificial material mostly made from oil or natural gas which can be moulded and shaped.
3. Correct this common mistake.
Mistake: There are no alternatives to plastic. Correction: There are lots of alternatives to plastic that are easier to break down or recycle and therefore have less of an environmental impact, for example, glass and metal.
More Lessons In This Unit
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