Educational tools

> A Latvian version is available here

Every day we have to do with it and usually we throw it thoughtlessly away: paper. Every fifth tree is cut for paper. A large part of our paper is manufactured in Austria. Nevertheless, 30% comes from countries such as Canada, Russia and China.

But how is paper produced? Since when do we use it and why is it so important? What about the old paper? How do I find myself in the jungle of certifications? And what can I do sustain this important material?
In this lesson, five different exercises are presented, with the help of which children from 6 to 10 years get to know the topic from different perspectives. All exercises follow the principle of global learning and are interactive and experience-oriented.

In many cultures, she is a goddess, a nurturer of the world and a cult figure: the cow. Like hardly any other animal, it has influenced humankind since its early history. The cow supplies milk and meat and helps today in the cultivation of the fields. Even their dung is usable as fuel. With 1.3 billion grazing cows in this world, it is also the largest mammalian species in the history of the earth. But this triumphant process also has its downside. Its sweet-temper and its outstanding feature of making grass to milk, the cow has degraded to an industrialised milk machine. The high-performance milk cows spend their short lives in narrow stables, give birth to an average of 4 calves, give 10,000 litres of milk a year, and their final path ends in the slaughterhouse at the age of 6. Our thirst for cheap milk and our hunger for cheap meat exacerbate their situation. Does it have to be that way? What do cows need to be happy? How do cows and people live together in different parts of the world? How do a cattle look in Ethiopia? And how much meat is actually healthy?

> An English version is also available  here

> A Latvian version is also available here

The tomato is the favourite vegetable for half of the Austrians. Due to their good taste and bright red colour, it was referred to as "paradise apple", in Austria today easily recognisable by the name "Paradeiser". Anything other than heavenly are the cultivation and sale of the tomatoes in our globalised age: most tomatoes in our supermarkets are from the Spanish region of Almeria. Precarious working conditions of pickers, use of pesticides and huge water consumption have come to the agenda. These are just some aspects that will be addressed. Activities are presented in an interactive way, so that children from 6 to 10 years get to know the tomato from different perspectives: learn exciting facts about them, look at Almeria from space, develop a seasonal calendar for local vegetables, locating the origin of supermarket vegetables identified by the labels and discover ancient tomato varieties.

For every unit teaching goals, methods, worksheets, a detailed sequence plan and background information for teachers are included.

> An English version is also available  here

> A Latvian version is also available here

> A Bulgarian version is also available here

Plastic is an indispensable part of our daily lives. Children’s rooms are full of plastic toys, water from lightweight plastic bottles is popular, our food is wrapped in plastic, our kitchens are full of plastic bowls and when we buy things everywhere plastic bags are used. Plastic is widely used and popular because of its characteristics. However, our full life of plastic gives the environment a hard fight. Rotting plastic takes up to 500 years. Sooner or later, large parts of the plastic waste end up in the sea. There are now even plastic islands in the sea. Many animals mistake the plastic waste with food, which often has deadly consequences. In addition, the water quality suffers from the plasticisers. Is plastic a curse or a blessing? Is it harmful to the human body? Would a life without plastic be possible at all? Are there any alternatives? And how can I approach this complex issue to 7 - 10-year olds?

This learning unit focuses on the idea to make a fruit salad together in class. Before the real cooking experience the children have to fullfill three tasks to gain knowledge about fruits from their homecountries and from all over the world.
Task 1 is to mark their favorite fruits for themselves and then make a ranking within small groups.
Task 2 is to accompany their parents into the supermarket, find out the producing countries of various fruits and write them on a worksheet.
Task 3 is to find – back in school – the producing countries of fruits on a map. The distances can be calculated and discussed. In small groups the children have to prepare their arguments for a group discussion and prepare posters according to question ethical consumerism (pros and cons of year-round availibility of fruits in supermarkets, dis/advantages of regional fruits, What is Bio and FairTrade?). Teacher provides back ground information for the group work and at the end every group presents their ideas/points of view.

At the end the whole decides on a democratic way which fruits should be selected to prepare a real fruit salat in class. Eating together and playing an energizer called „fruit salad“ completes the learning unit.