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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Drowning in Plastic – Reading Comprehension Worksheet
Teach your students facts about ocean pollution with this comprehensive article with accompanying comprehension activities.
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Renewable vs Non-Renewable Energy Sources – Worksheet
Discover the difference between renewable and non-renewable energy sources with a comprehension passage and worksheet.
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What Is Climate Change? Comprehension Worksheet
Teach your students about the perils of climate change with this comprehensive article with accompanying comprehension questions.
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Species Survival! Science Word Search
Explore vocabulary related to the National Science Week 2024 theme of “Species Survival – More Than Sustainability” with a differentiated word search.
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Recycling Word Search
Build your students’ vocabulary around the topic of recycling with this recycling-themed word search.
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What is Pollution? PowerPoint Slideshow
Show your students the different types of pollution and their effects with an instructional PowerPoint on pollution.
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Caring For Country and Place in Sustainable Ways PowerPoint
Explore how Indigenous peoples care for Country and Place in sustainable ways with a teaching presentation.
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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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How Can We Help Our Planet Mini Book
Help your students learn about how to keep our planet clean with a printable Earth Day book.
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Material World PowerPoint - Processed and Natural Materials
Discover the difference between processed and natural materials with an instructional slide show.
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Environmental Impact Science Experiments
Use these simple science experiments to teach your students about environmental issues such as oil and water pollution, soil quality and climate change.
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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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Deforestation – Infographic Poster and Worksheet
Read and learn about deforestation with an engaging infographic and comprehension worksheet.
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Earth’s Resources Worksheet - Natural Resources & Fossil Fuels (3-4)
Explore what's buried in rocks underground with a printable Earth’s Resources Worksheet for Year 4.
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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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Recycling Poster Pack
Use our Recycling Poster pack to teach your students about sustainability and conservation.
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Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint – Poster and Worksheet
Explore how to reduce your carbon footprint with this poster and accompanying comprehension worksheet.
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Endangered Animals Classification Poster
Explore endangered animal classifications with this informative classroom poster.
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Sustainability Activity - Caring for the Environment
Promote sustainable living with a sustainability sorting activity.
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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 – Sorting Activity
Identify resources as either renewable or nonrenewable with this 24-card sorting activity
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Amazon Rainforest Facts - Reading Passage
Read and learn about conservation with a reading passage and comprehension worksheet on the Amazon Rainforest.
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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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Comprehension Worksheets - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Read to learn about the Great Pacific Garbage patch with a printable reading comprehension worksheet pack.
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Natural Resources Word Search
Review the different natural resources with a word search.
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My Ecological Footprint - Reference Sheet
Teach your students about the things we do that affect the Earth with an ecological footprint reference sheet.
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Water Overuse – Infographic Poster and Worksheet
Explore the overuse of water and its effects on the world’s population with this eye-opening infographic poster and accompanying comprehension worksheet.
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What Can Be Recycled? Poster
A poster showing the products that can be recycled.
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Human Innovation and Environmental Conservation Teaching Slides
Teach your students how human innovation is helping conserve the environment with this teaching presentation perfect for National Science Week 20204.
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Design a Conservation T-Shirt – Inquiry-Based Project
Use this conservation project to teach your students about how to ignite positive change in the face of a global environmental crisis.
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Australian Habitat Preservation – Inquiry-Based Project
Use this habitat preservation project to teach your students about how to help conserve a threatened Australian environment for future generations.
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Water Conservation Foldable
Display different ways to save water with this water conservation foldable.