Learning about Recycling and Reuse through Pre-School Games

Learning about Recycling and Reuse through Pre-School Games S.M. Shobeyri, Ph.D. H. Meybodi A. Saraadipoor S. Rashidi Environmental education is the most fundamental approach to environmental protection and can begin from the pre-school level and through the use of games. To show the effectiveness of this approach, a random sample of 30 preschoolers of ages 5 and 6 was selected and then placed into two groups of experimental and control. The experimental group learned about the recycling and reuse of materials by utilizing the specially designed and constructed games, while the other group was taught the same content using the regular teaching method. Furthermore, a questionnaire with internal consistency of 0.72 was constructed and used. Data analyses revealed a significant difference between the knowledge of the two groups on the given subject with the experimental group having the upper hand. Hence, the use of such games in preschools is recommended. Key words: educational games, environmental education, recycling and reuse, preschoolers