Compost factory

The Compost Factory introduces pupils into the recycling of biodegradable waste. By experimenting they learn how to make compost from kitchen waste and so use these as fertilizer to grow tomatoes and other crop plants. They gather knowledge on the importance of earthworms in the natural cycle. The experiments alsodemonstrate the difference between biodegradable and non-degradable waste. Pupils can observe what is happening to a plastic bottle in the compost and thus conclude why bottles should not bethrown on a forest soil.



The teaching unit consists of three experiments:

• The Classroom Compost Box guides pupils through a simple composting process and provides them with a model of biodegradation in natural soils. It teaches how to produce a good compost and allows them to observe how different materials are degraded in nature.
  
  
• Worm composting introduces pupils to the importance of earthworms in the natural cycle by way of observing their actions and benefits in the composting process.
  
  
• Compost grows Tomato teaches pupils how to use compost as a fertilizer for growing crop plants. In the growth experiment pupils discover how nature reuses nutrients and how this recycling can be beneficial for human waste management and food production.
  

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