Tell Recycle Now how you encourage your DCs to recycle for a chance to win an iPad mini! NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

We are all aware of the importance of recycling, but it can be easy to forget when we’re all so busy browsing MN threads. Recycle Now has teamed up with Wastebuster to launch a campaign to encourage more families to recycle more items, more often. They would like to hear how you encourage your DCs to recycle and for you to take part in their Home Recycling Challenge.

Here’s what Recycle Now has to say: “To help kids recycle more at home, we’ve created the Home Recycling Challenge, which includes the chance to win great prizes. Here’s how you and your family can take part:

Step 1 – visit wastebuster.co.uk/homerecyclingchallenge and download the competition sheet/ recycling poster template

Step 2 – use the recycling locator with your kids to find out what can and can’t be recycled in your area and use this information to fill in the blanks and decorate on your poster

Step 3 – stick the poster up in your home and take a family selfie

Step 4 – upload your photo to the Recycling Hero Hall of Fame to be in with a shot of winning some great prizes!

Every family has a different routine, and we want to hear about how you teach your kids good recycling habits that they can take forward into later life. Did you know that you can recycle bleach bottles, shampoo bottles, kitchen cleaner bottles, baby food jars, aerosol deodorants, face cream pots and dishwasher tablet boxes?”

Have a look at their video here

So how do you get your DC to recycle at home? Maybe you make a game of it by seeing who can recycle the most? Perhaps you make it easier to sort by having stickered bins? Do you take it in turns or is it one person’s job? Or do you give your DC rewards for recycling?

Please share on this thread how you encourage your DCs to recycle below and you will be entered into the prize draw to where one winner will win an iPad mini.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T and Cs Apply

Singing that blasted recycling song from peppa pig. I can't put anything in the recycling without singing it to myself and the little one is delighted to help. It's a blessing and a curse.

kids help sort and take out recycling for collection, just need reminding

We have a gold star chart in our kitchen, and every time DD puts an item in the recycling bin, she gets a star and rewards at the end of the month depending on how many stars! She has learnt recently about landfills in school and has got a lot more serious about it since then.

We just make it part of our daily routine - they think it's completely normal to put certain things by the back door instead of in the bin, for example, and wouldn't do any different. My eldest DC is actually better than I am at it - her school has been fantastic at teaching them about the environment and how to look after it, she's always telling me off for putting things in the bin!

Kitchen - food caddy for food (and garden) waste which is collected weekly. Both DC are expected to scrape their plates before putting in the dishwasher

Kitchen - general waste bin and recycling bin. DC know any card, paper, food tins, plastic etc goes in recycling bin. Each bin is collected fortnightly on alternate weeks.

Garden - weeds put into garden waste bin which is collected weekly (part of food waste collection).

Other - just moved over to reusable container for water for DC packed lunches, no more bottled water, if possible any unwanted items are given to the charity shop, try to be more environmentally aware when shopping e.g. buying loose fruit and veg rather than packaged

DC are on board with it all

We Have a big bag behind the kitchen door which all the recycling goes into then everyday it gets carried around the the recycling boxes outside, in the kitchen we have a chalkboard and each time one of the children empty the bag they get a point against their name on the board which they get to cash in monthly for rewards wither cash or extra screen time or staying up late time

Recycling is part of our every day life, and the DC are involved in it. It's part of our daily routine that recycling is done after every meal, when having clear-outs etc. We keep the bins in the front porch & both my kids (8 & 4) are able to put things in appropriately. So it's not a "thing" as such, so we don't need to make a big point about it as such.

They also help put out the bins on recycling day. We also talk about other ways of recycling, for example to charity shops & Ebay, passing onto friends.

My 4-year old loves it (I think Rocky the recycling pup from Paw Patrol has a lot to do with it!).

I want them to grow up keeping waste to a minimum, and recycling (in some way) whenever possible.

The kids know because they copy me, I have always recycled. Two bins in the kitchen, three if you include food waste. Even DC5 knows to check which bin something goes in if he's not sure, and that yoghurt pots go in the sink to get washed, not in the bin.

we've always recycled and included this into every day life from the beginning

This is a weird question to me. I have no idea how we taught the dc to recycle. We just do it. They just copied us, did what's normal in the family. I suppose we just said "put it in the bin", or "put it in the paper bin/plastic bin" etc. They see us repair, reuse and repurpose.

I have different labelled bins in the kitchen and an 'unsure' bin, if they aren't sure which bin to put it in. I make it out to be a game, a challenge to see how can recycle the most. Doesn't always work but overall, it's going okay!

We've always recycled as my DD was born in Germany and both kids grew up there - it's a very big thing so it's always been second nature to them.

My local council seems to be reducing the amount of paper banks, can banks and bottle banks in an attempt to save money. Their argument is that you can still take these items to the household waste recycling centre, but people are less likely to do this because of the long queues.

Coloured boxes, for paper, plastic and glass. I get reminded when I forget!!

I get DD to help with the recycling now, so that she doesn't chuck everything in the bin. She knows that drinks bottles, and batteries and toilet roll tubes all go in the recycling rather than be thrown on the floor .

We recycle all packaging and basically everything that can be recycled, is recycled.

Our local council still don't think that is enough though and are going to go from fortnightly to three weekly black bin collections. Not sure what they expect us to do with the rubbish that won't fit in the bin.

My son learned about recycling when we used to make crafts when he was a toddler. He was amazed about what could be made with things such as toilet roll cardboard and cereal boxes. Now whenever he has a bit of rubbish he will say to me 'what could this make??' and will put it in our recycling box. We had a few hiccups when he was putting bits of food in there but he quickly dropped that habit haha!

My DCs have grown-up with recycling so it is all that they have known. We have a large plastic crate sat on a stool in the kitchen for recycling and a 'bit-box' on the windowsill for the compost bin. Very little goes in our black bin - only food wrappers/packets that are non-recyclable. The DCs know exactly what goes in which bin/box. We've trained them well.

we used to keep absolutely everything made of cardboard to use for building anything from robots, to dens. I find it harder to convince my husband ( different generation ) as to the value and merits of recycling

I don't know about you but my daughter is the one nagging US about recycling! I think children get so much information about saving the planet that they are the ones encouraging the grown ups!

In our house everyone knows how to recycle and it's made easy for them as the recycle bins are right outside the back kitchen door.

My children are very knowledgeable about recycling, it's the older generations and businesses we need to target! Maybe the children can teach them a thing or two.

We haves bin for rubbish and a bin for recycling, but to be honest, I don't have to do too much to get my son to recycle....just the odd stern word whenI find a can in the rubbish rather than recycling!

Kids are very enthusiastic already - they go to an eco school to get more enthusiasm going I get them to join in putting small items in the right place and running up to the blue bin

Give them ownership and let them recycle independently! They know the score!

To be honest I have never really had to encourage my son to recycle, its always been a natural thing in our house to sort things out into those that can't be recycled which go in the bin and those that can which go in a carrier bag next to it that gets emptied into the recycling bin outside when it is full. We also try to sell things on ebay we no longer use and take old clothing and so on to the local charity shops, we also have a clothes bank and bottle bank locally so we can take anything the council won't take and put it in there.