Classroom activity Grade 2 Science

Storm Drain or Trash Can? A Grade 2 Litter-Sorting Toss Game

A grade 2 toss game where students sort called-out items into a trash can hoop or a 'leave it' response to keep litter out of a storm drain.

Grade: Grade 2
Subject: Science
Material: Classroom activity
Time: 25 min
Prep: Low prep
Materials: 1 hoop or bin labeled Trash Can, 1 large paper storm drain grate, taped flat on the floor a few feet from the hoop (not a toss target), 1-2 soft bean bags, 16 item call-cards, mixing litter items and natural items, A tally area on the board for scoring

Standards

K-2-ETS1-1 NGSS

Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool.

How this material aligns: Students hear the problem that litter near a storm drain travels straight to a creek, then practice the behavior that addresses it by directing litter to the trash can; this supports, rather than fully meets, the standard.

All materials for K-2-ETS1-1 →

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This material is in the public domain (CC0) and may be copied, edited, and shared freely, without attribution. Updated 2026-07-16.

Objectives

Students will sort called-out items into litter that belongs in the trash can and natural items that are fine to leave outside.
Students will explain why litter near a storm drain becomes pollution in a nearby creek.

Vocabulary

Storm drain: A storm drain is the grate at the edge of a street that swallows rainwater and sends it through pipes to the nearest creek or river. That water is usually not treated, so only rain belongs down the drain.

Also: litter, natural, pollution

Teacher overview

This is a whole-class toss game that practices one simple rule: litter belongs in the trash can, never near a storm drain, because a storm drain carries whatever sits near it straight to a nearby creek without any cleaning first. A "Trash Can" hoop sits a few feet from a paper storm drain grate taped to the floor, and students respond to called-out items either by tossing a bean bag into the hoop or by calling "Leave it!" for natural items that are fine outdoors, turning the litter-versus-natural sorting decision into a physical response every student can see and hear.

Activity Directions

Before class, set the Trash Can hoop or bin at one side of the play space and tape the large paper storm drain grate to the floor a few feet away; the grate is never a toss target. Shuffle the 16 item call-cards.
Explain the rule to the class: storm drains carry rainwater, and anything sitting near them, straight to a nearby creek without any cleaning first, so litter belongs in the trash can, never near the drain.
Call students up one at a time. Draw a card and read the item aloud, for example, "candy wrapper."
If the item is litter, the student tosses a bean bag into the Trash Can hoop from a marked line. If the item is something natural that is fine to leave outside, such as a leaf or a twig, the student freezes in place and calls out "Leave it!" instead of tossing.
Award the class one tally point on the board for each correct toss or correct "Leave it!" call. Incorrect responses earn no point, and play continues without any penalty.
Continue calling cards, rotating which student goes next, until the full deck of 16 cards has been played or a 15-minute timer runs out.
Total the class's tally points once the deck is finished, and compare the total to the number of cards played.
Gather the class together for the debrief once the deck is finished or time is up.

From Water for Schools (waterforschools.org). This material is in the public domain (CC0) and may be copied, edited, and shared freely.

Answer Key

Answer: Litter items from the deck, such as candy wrapper, plastic bag, soda can, foil, juice box straw wrapper, and plastic bottle cap, belong in the Trash Can hoop.
Answer: Natural items from the deck, such as leaf, twig, acorn, and flower petal, should be left alone outside, so students call "Leave it!" instead of tossing for these.
Debrief question: "If our class scored a tally of correct responses out of 16 cards played, what does a higher score tell us?" Answer: Accept any answer that compares the class's tally to the 16 cards played and reasons that a higher score means the class is better at telling litter apart from natural items and knows where each one belongs.
Debrief question: "Why is it a problem if litter ends up near the storm drain instead of the trash can?" Answer: Because the storm drain carries whatever sits near it straight to the creek without cleaning it first, so litter left near the drain becomes pollution in the creek.

Differentiation

Support

Reduce the deck to 8 clearly contrasting cards, very obviously litter or very obviously natural, and post a two-column picture chart labeled "Litter" and "Natural" for students to check before tossing.

Extension

Add three trickier cards to the deck, such as a paper napkin, a biodegradable coffee cup, and a fallen apple core, and have advanced students explain out loud why they chose to toss or call "Leave it!" for each one.

ELL supports

Use picture cards for every item instead of word-only cards, and pre-teach "litter," "natural," "trash can," and "storm drain" with simple gestures before the game begins.