The Nature of Our Stuff

• This activity encourages students to think about the natural resources that are used to make everyday objects. 
• After learning about natural resources, students will identify objects that are made from trees, sand, clay, animals, and metal and record their answers on a worksheet. 

Positives

• This simple activity will show students that all objects come from other materials.
• The sources section links to an article on natural resources that explains the difference between renewable and nonrenewable sources.
  

Additional Prerequisites

• Younger students may need some help brainstorming objects for each of the categories. Instead of asking students to find objects, teachers may wish to present a number of objects for students to classify.

Differentiation

• As an art activity, students could work in groups to find pictures of objects in old magazines and then sort the pictures by natural resource. Once there are enough pictures of each of the five natural resources, students could use them to make collages.
• Students could write a few sentences about what individuals can do to make sure that they are conserving natural resources (treat objects with care, do not waste food, reuse objects). Younger students could write a sentence and draw a picture to illustrate their idea.
• Other resources on this topic include this video on preserving ecosystems and biodiversity, this project on upcycling discarded objects, and this ebook about improper trash disposal.