Organize a Neighborhood Trash-Collection Activity for Your Youth Group to Participate in
If you are a youth group leader and are attempting to teach the students who are in your care about the impact that trash has on society and how it can cause the environment to be dirty and unpleasant, organize a trash-collection activity to beautify the community that you live in. The following tips will assist with holding a successful garbage-removal event and may encourage the children to continue doing their part in the future by throwing litter in waste containers.
Break the Students Up into Teams and Assign Specific Areas
Before beginning to collect trash, break the students up into teams. Hand out trash bags to each team and designate an area to meet once trash has been collected. Also, set up an area nearby to place full bags of trash. Give each team a portable two-way radio so that they can contact you if they need assistance. Offer breaks throughout the event so that children can satiate their thirst and hunger and continue to pick up waste materials without getting tired or feeling uncomfortable.
Provide Shirts with a Uniform Appearance
Order shirts that have the name of your youth group, the name of each child, and a logo printed on them. Request that the children put on the shirts prior to picking up waste materials. The shirts will help you keep track of all of the children who are in your care and will alert people passing by of the good deed that your group is participating in. Once the trash-collection event is over, the children can keep the shirts in order to remember the day that they made a difference by helping to clean up the community.
Offer an Incentive to the Children
Offer an incentive, such as a gift certificate to a restaurant or movie theater or a monetary award to help keep the children motivated and eager to collect trash. Tell the children that rewards will be given out to teams that collect the most trash. If you would like to present the awards in a formal setting, plan a ceremony in the near future. Invite each child's family members and friends and commend each kid that participated in the trash drive.
If the trash-cleanup activity is successful and the children were glad to be a part of it, hold another one in the future to assist with keeping the environment clean and attractive.
Contact companies like ENVIROTECH Inc for more ideas about how to keep the environment in good shape.