Small Changes, Big Impact: Recycling and Upcycling in Early Childhood

Are you noticing a lot of food being thrown away?

Consider offering appropriate portions and allowing children to request more. Review food preparation practices, meal timing and children’s preferences while respecting their hunger and fullness cues. 

Where suitable systems are available, food scraps may also be composted. Check which scraps your composting system or collection service accepts. Ask your families/community if they can recycle food scraps for chicken food or home compost.

Are children using large amounts of paper? Are we printing documents unnecessarily or could some information be shared and stored digitally? 

Consider using both sides of paper, making suitable offcuts available for creative experiences and recycling clean, accepted paper when it is no longer needed. 

Keep paper accessible for children’s meaningful drawing, writing and exploration while helping them learn to use resources thoughtfully. 

Are we thoughtful about the resources we purchase and how we use them? 

Consider whether resources are durable, can be used in multiple ways and can support children’s play over time. Before buying new supplies, check what is already available. 

Suitable fabric remnants, cardboard and other clean materials may offer opportunities for reuse or upcycling. An organised collection can help educators see what they have and avoid unnecessary purchases. 

Are supplies being ordered in ways that create unnecessary packaging?

Where practical, choose products with less packaging and purchase frequently used supplies in bulk when they can be stored and used without waste.

Before placing an order, ask: Do we need this? Could an existing resource serve the same purpose? Could something be repaired or repurposed?

Are we using our outdoor spaces to support sustainable practices?

Consider composting suitable garden waste, growing herbs or vegetables and using available green waste collection services.

There may also be opportunities to upcycle suitable containers into planters or repurpose existing resources for garden use. Check their condition, previous contents and suitability before introducing them.

• Check what your council accepts 

Make sure your team know what belongs in each bin and which items need separate disposal as recycling guidelines and collection services vary.  

A few helpful reminders:  

• Empty containers before placing them in recycling. 
• Keep recyclables loose rather than placing them in plastic bags. 
• Keep food scraps and general rubbish out of recycling bins. 
• Check whether items such as batteries and electronic waste require separate collection or drop-off. 
• Ask your waste contractor whether contamination or collection arrangements could be improved. 

For services in WA, visit Recycle Right WA to check local recycling guidance. 

• Involve the whole team & the children 

Recycling and upcycling work best when everyone understands their role. Rather than leaving sustainability to one educator, make it a shared responsibility. 

Discuss what your waste audit reveals, agree on a practical change and revisit it together. Has it reduced waste? Are the systems easy to follow? What needs adjusting? 

Recycling involves collecting and processing accepted waste materials so they can become new materials or products. 

• Set up clearly labelled recycling stations with pictures of accepted items. The visual guides to help children understand where different materials belong. 
• Position bins conveniently for educators and makes supported participation accessible to children. 
• Invite children to participate in sorting clean, locally accepted recycled materials with educator support.  
• Explore what happens to materials after they are collected. 

Ask questions such as: “What is this made from?” “How could we find out where it belongs?” “What might it become after recycling?” 

Invite children to help care for gardens, look after shared resources and discuss waste during meals, play and creative experiences. 

Explain your own decisions in simple language: “We can use the other side of this paper,” or “Let’s see whether we can repair this before replacing it.” 

These small conversations help children connect everyday actions with caring for the environment. 

Before purchasing something new, consider what is already available.  

Clean cardboard boxes, paper, fabric offcuts and other suitable materials can provide opportunities for construction, imaginative play and creative exploration.  

A box may be used repeatedly for building, transporting resources or pretend play without needing to be altered. 

Establish an organised collection of safe, clean reusable materials that educators and children can draw on. Regularly review it, so the collection remains useful and manageable. 

Upcycling involves transforming an unwanted item into something useful or of greater value. 

With children’s ideas and appropriate educator support, you might: 

• Transform a sturdy cardboard box into a puppet theatre for ongoing storytelling. 
• Turn suitable fabric offcuts into reusable bunting for service celebrations. 
• Repurpose suitable containers into planters for a herb garden. 
• Transform an old adult shirt into a painting smock by adapting it for safe, comfortable use. 

Involve children in planning, creating and evaluating the result. 

“What could this become?” 

“What would we need to change?” 

“How could we make it last?” 

Always consider children’s ages, hygiene, choking hazards, sharp edges and the suitability of materials. Adults should complete any preparation requiring tools or other potentially hazardous processes.