Sustainability Teaching Resources
Make teaching sustainability easy this school year with printable worksheets, activities for kids, lesson plans and more — all created by teachers for your primary classroom.
This teaching resource collection is aligned with the Australian Curriculum cross-curriculum priority to help your students build a more sustainable future!
Each resource was designed to help your students understand how they can implement sustainable practices in the classroom and at home.
Our teacher team has carefully reviewed and curated each resource to ensure your students will be armed with information on everything from composting to conservation, as well as how to reduce, reuse, recycle, rethink, and repair.
Tackling this topic for the first time in your classroom? Read on for a primer from our teacher team!
What Is Sustainability? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Sustainability is a cross-curriculum priority in the Australian Curriculum and for a good reason. Primary school is an important time to begin talking to students about sustainability as we can instill these practices early and make them into lifelong habits. But explaining this concept to kids can be tricky.
Here's a kid-friendly sustainability definition we like to use to explain its meaning to our students:
Sustainability is the ability to meet someone's current needs without hurting the ability of people in the future to meet their own needs.
On a more technical level, sustainability represents a holistic approach to addressing environmental, social and economic challenges in a way that supports long-term well-being and resilience.
This often includes practices such as reducing carbon emissions, conserving natural resources, and promoting social equity.
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Renewable and Non-renewable Resources – Cut and Paste Worksheet
Sort renewable and non-renewable resources with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Critically Endangered Species Map – Poster
A poster of the world map featuring 64 species and subspecies that are on the critically endangered list.
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Rubbish Bin Sorting Activity
Learn about recycling, composting, and sustainable practices for waste management with a fun sorting activity.
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Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Poster
Display this poster when learning about sustainability.
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My Ecological Footprint Worksheet
A worksheet which will have the students evaluate their ecological footprint and compare it with the class.
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Solving Global Problems - Design an Invention Workbook
Help your students discover how innovation and invention can solve global problems with an invention project workbook.
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What is Pollution? Instructional Slide Deck
Show your students the types of pollution and their effects with an instructional slide deck.
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How is Plastic Recycled? – Recycling Worksheets
Explore the process of recycling plastic with a printable recycling worksheet.
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Natural Resources Word Search
Review the different natural resources with a word search.
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Waste Management Investigation - How Much Waste Do We Throw Away?
A practical investigation related to sustainable waste management.
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Renewable or Nonrenewable? - Self-Checking Interactive
Investigate the differences between renewable and nonrenewable resources with a self-checking interactive science game.
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Human Impact on the Environment-Research Project
Uncover how humans positively and negatively impact the different biomes around the world with a guided research project.
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Comparing Energy Sources Worksheet & Graphic Organiser
Compare and contrast different types of renewable energy sources with a printable graphic organiser.
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Student Lunch Box Audit - Reducing Waste Project
An investigation that will have students calculating the waste produced from their lunch boxes, creating a plan of action to reduce their waste and reflecting on their results.
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Develop a Habitat - Garden Project
A project-based assessment task for students to demonstrate their understanding of how habitats can be preserved and protected in and around where people live.
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What Can Be Recycled? Poster
A poster showing the products that can be recycled.
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Flipbooks
Display different ways to conserve resources with a set of handy recycling–based foldable interactive notebook templates.
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Save Planet Earth - Science Word Wall Vocabulary
Print and display Earth Day-related terms in your classroom to improve vocabulary and discussion about Earth Day.
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What Can We Recycle? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Remember what to recycle with a cut-and-paste worksheet.
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How Do We Use Natural Resources? Concept Map Worksheet
Help your students uncover the ways that humans use natural resources with a concept map.
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Natural Resources Mini Book
Learn about natural resources with this printable mini-book.
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Our Natural and Built Environments - Poster Pack
Poster with definitions and examples of natural and built environments.
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National Tree Day – Environment Word Search
Print a word search to use on National Tree Day or Earth Day to help your students learn about conservation.
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National Tree Day – Why Plant a Tree? Infographic Analysis Activity
Teach about the importance of trees on National Tree Day with an infographic poster and cloze note-taking worksheet.
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Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources Flipbook
Use this printable science flipbook with your students to research and write about a chosen natural resource.
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Renewable & Non-renewable Resources – Instructional Slide Deck
Investigate the differences between renewable and non-renewable resources as well as the benefits and disadvantages of each, with this instructional slide deck.
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How to Build a Worm Farm - Poster Pack
Learn to build your own worm farm and learn about vermicomposting with a handy project guide.
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rethink and Repair - Brainstorming Sheets
Brainstorm All the Ways to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle with a pack of printable brainstorming worksheets.
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Garbage Bin Posters - Rubbish, Recycling and Compost
Posters outlining what can be put in the different types of bins.
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Recycling Craft - We Recycle Because...
Write about why we recycle and create this recycling craft to display in the classroom.
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Water Overuse Infographic Poster
Display important facts and statistics about water overuse with an eye-opening infographic.
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Save the Planet - Kids Mini Book
Teach your students to reduce, reuse, and recycle with a printable Save the Planet kid's book.