1. Repurposing, or using an item other than it's original purpose.
and
2. Upcycling, which is "the practice of taking something that is disposable and transforming it into something of greater use and value." (www.thefreedictionary.com)
This is something we practice at our school, where the kids and teachers bring in paper and newspapers from home, empty containers, and restaurant take-out cups (lots of them).
- Empty containers (yogurt, cheese, peanut butter jars, ice cream containers in funky shapes) are often re-used as storage; although we have, on occasion, used them as palettes, or water bowls for painting. We have also used them as molds for making candles. Larger containers are sometimes used as prep trays, where we put materials that we are going to use for a particular class. They have also been up-cycled (using glue and colored tissue) as pencil-holders, eraser holders. Oh, those Chillz cups with the dome cover? we have one currently in use as the writing prompt holder (also works as Pictionary prompts). We shake the cup and pull one prompt out of the hole at the top.
- Bottle caps of water and juice bottles make excellent bases for little sculptures. We used some to make our totems/avatars out of plaster of Paris strips; and then we use them as game pieces.
- Egg Cartons are best for sorting activities, although one dad made a little school bus out of an egg carton once.
- Small sortable items like empty pen caps, odd beads, small toys from birthday party loot bags. Keep them in a big container, then use them for sorting activities or to teach place value (in the lower grades we do this for math).
- Fabric scrap, or textured scrap (like sandpaper, wall paper swatches) make for interesting stamping or painting tools. As do old pre-paid load cards.
- Old combs for adding texture to clay.
- Styrofoam containers and trays make great stamps (use bottle caps as a base)
- small baby cologne bottles can be used as squeeze containers, when the kids are using "special" mixes like paint and soap (it's nice and runny, very Jackson Pollock); glue and food coloring. Baby powder bottles are excellent pretend salt and pepper shakers.
When the empties are not in use, and sit on the shelf, we can always use them to play grocery-grocery as Teacher Tom did. My toddler niece loved the grocery-then-cooking-then-pretend picnic game; and couldn't have cared less whether she was using the commercial, store-bought kitchen toys or the upcycled, repurposed pretend ones. The big kids at school sometimes look at a piece of recyclable - the odder, the better - and dream up things that can be done with them.
Go ahead, try it (Be sure you wash everything out before you use them).
Enjoy!
