Educational Resources for Secondary Schools
At Lanes for Drains, we are dedicated to assisting schools across the country in educating teenagers about important environmental topics that are not included in the national curriculum.
We regularly work with schools to provide teaching resources, lesson plans, class packs and more, to ensure that school pupils have the information they need to protect the environment and help their peers do the same.
Binner or Sinner? Hidden plastics and how to dispose of them to save the environment
We have created a unique, engaging lesson plan and set of educational resources that plugs the gap in the national curriculum when it comes to discussions of hidden plastics and how to protect the environment against them.
Hidden plastics are found in a surprisingly large range of everyday products, such as:
- Wet wipes
- Tampons
- Panty liners
- Nappies
- Sanitary towels
- Teabags
- Some toothpastes
- Some face washes
Because of this non-biodegradable hidden plastic – they should always be disposed of in a bin.
However, awareness of the environmental and structural impact of flushing such items down the toilet or putting them down our drains is really low in the UK – and we need our schoolchildren to help us change habits in our homes.
To give you an idea of the extent of the problem, a recent Lanes survey found 39% of female respondents have flushed either a wipe, sanitary towel, panty liner or tampon down the toilet in their lifetime – that equates to some 20 million people in the UK.
The lesson plan
Many thanks to the pupils and staff at Woodhey High School, Ramsbottom, Bury.
Our unique lesson plan is ideal for KS3 students and teaches the following:
- Plastic pollution
- Hidden plastics in common everyday items and how to identify them
- The effect of plastic pollution on the environment and our sewer infrastructure
- The correct disposal of products that contain hidden plastics
View and download our lesson plan below:
Additional teaching resources
We have also developed a Hidden Plastic factfile – a teaching resource to go alongside this lesson plan that provides lots of background information about hidden plastics and the effect of hidden plastic pollution on the environment and infrastructure.
Download the factfile by clicking the image below:
