School activities

Hygiene Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The sanitation theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Sanitation Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The sanitation theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Biodiversity Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The biodiversity theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Waste Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The waste theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Energy Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The energy theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Water Activity Template

Everyone is invited to contribute to the activity collection with their own ideas to make it grow and let it become more comprehensive. The water theme template can be downloaded here. Once filled out, it should kindly be sent back to the SuSanA secretariat (info@susana.org) and can be added to the online activity collection.

Who is responsible for my School Toilet?

Often the school personnel let it be the cleaner, watchmen or the caretaker, is face and nameless to the students. It is easier to pollute a place or act in vandalism if one doesn’t have empathy with the person on whose life this action has a direct impact because he/she has to clean/repair it. Thus empathy has to be raised to build mutual respect. This activity brings together the school …

Inauguration Party

School toilets are rarely a place that is openly talked about and celebrated. This activity will give students the opportunity to get involved in the planning of a toilet inauguration party. The students will learn to organise and work as a team. Find out from the head of school what budget and/or other support will be available before doing this activity.

School Toilet Design

This activity is supportive when the construction of new toilet facilities is planned. Remind your students to be realistic as there are only limited funds available. Let them think of a) ways to raise the funds or b) less costly ways to reach the same goal.

After you have broken the taboo to talk about toilets with the students (see activity “Let’s discuss our school toilets!”), and …

Tag for Germs

This game sensitizes on the idea of germs being spread via touch and that hand washing removes germs effectively.

Ecosystem Tag

This game introduces the idea of food chains to the students. An example food chain is given, but there is no limitation in changing the food chain.

Handwashing

Heat it up with your Solar Cooker!

A solar cooker is a cooking device which uses the energy of direct sunlight to heat, cook or pasteurize food or water. The solar cooker presented here is a low-tech device and relatively inexpensive for a usage at household level. Advanced, large-scale solar cookers can cook for hundreds of people. Because they use no fuel and have no operating costs, their use worldwide is promoted in order to …

Wise People Use Less Water

Water is the source of all life on earth. This activity helps students understand how much water they use to give them a perspective on their water footprint.

Irrigation with Grey Water

One way to conserve water is to find ways to use it twice. Many households use more water to keep their lawn and garden green than they use for cooking, cleaning and drinking. Therefore, the reuse of greywater (water that has been used for washing or bathing) for irrigation saves water.

Every Drop Counts

Water is often a scarce commodity. Nevertheless, facilities are frequently not well maintained and large amounts of water are wasted. Have a look around the school compound for leaking taps. If there are any, use them for the experiment.

Note: This activity is only suitable in schools with sources of tap water.

Plastic Bags

Plastic bags are hazardous to the environment, to animals and also impacting human health. They are widely used without consideration of the potential bad impacts. Often alternatives exist, though are not used.

How dangerous is your waste?

Hazardous waste is waste that poses substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment. Household hazardous waste (HHW) includes household chemicals and other substances for which the owner no longer has a use, such as consumer products sold for home care, personal care, automotive care, pest control and other purposes. Examples include drain cleaners, oil paint, motor oil, …

The Big Dig

A lot of waste ends up dumped on the streets, and finds its way into the nature unprocessed. Find out which materials are biodegradable and which are not.

Start by breaking the taboo: Let’s discuss our school toilets!

Before you start talking with a group about toilets and hygiene habits it is helpful to get an impression on how the pupils rate the current sanitation facilities and how they feel using it. This task serves as a sensitization for both sides, to raise the understanding of the existing issues (if there are any) and open the discussion about toilets. Break the taboo on sanitation and start the …

School Loo Painting Competition

School toilets are often neglected by the pupils or face the issue of vandalism. This activity will let students make their school toilet more attractive, create a sense of ownership and thereby protect the school toilet from vandalism. Decide with the head of school and/or school board, who will take part in the competition and which part of the toilets should be decorated (e.g. whole building, …

Toilet audit: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
School level

This exercise turns your students into scientists that do research on the sanitation facilities in their schools. It sensitizes them on issues with their school sanitation facilities, and whether or not there is a lack of facilities within their school. It encourages them to develop their own ideas of improving the facilities.

Note: This activity is only useful if the findings from this audit …

Toilet audit: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
Neighbourhood level

This exercise turns your students into field scientists that do research on the water and sanitation supply in their own neighbourhoods.

Tippy Tap

The tippy tap is a hands free way to wash your hands that is especially appropriate for rural areas where there is no running water. It is operated by a foot lever and thus reduces the chance for bacteria transmission, as the user touches only the soap. It uses only 40 millilitres of water to wash your hands versus 250 millilitres using a mug. Additionally, the used “waste” water can go to …

Raj’s map of Bangalore

Understanding the source of a disease is a precondition to stop further infections. This task lets students find out more about how open defecation can be the starting point of an outbreak.

Power Play

During this activity your students turn into actors that prepare a “power play” on different topics regarding energy conversation. This could be the start of a classroom challenge where students are encouraged to turn off lights and fans, and participate in other energy saving measures.

Electrical Appliances in Everyday Life

Understanding the amount of energy consumed by the appliances surrounding us and realising the potential financial savings of a more energy saving behaviour is a first step towards a more responsible energy consumption.

Web of Life

Ecosystems are highly interlinked, complex structures. The importance of a single unit in the system can easily be neglected by the overload of complexity. Nevertheless, each part of an ecosystem has its defined role and importance that is worth being regarded.

Compost it in the Compost Pit!

Decomposition of biodegradable “waste” is a crucial part of the natural nutrient cycle and “waste management system”. Organic leftovers are a rich source of nutrients, thus can rather be seen as a resource, than actual “waste”. The nutrients can easily be recovered by a composting process, that besides reduces the amount of waste produced per household.

Clean Water with solar energy using a solar still

When water evaporates it leaves all of its impurities behind. Evaporation removes impurities, such as salts and heavy metals, and eliminates microbiological organisms. The end result is water cleaner than the purest rainwater.

Build your own water filter
(with coal)

Clean water which can be used for drinking or cooking is rare in many rural areas. Therefore, it is important for people not to waste clean water (water conservation) and also to know of simple ways to clean the water.
Please note: the water cleaned by this simple filtration method is NOT suitable for drinking, as it may still contain harmful components. However, it could be used for cooking or …

Build your own water filter

This activity informs the students about simple and natural ways to clean water, and how they could potentially be used to treat drinking water.
Please note: the water cleaned by this simple filtration method is NOT suitable for drinking, as it may still contain harmful components.

Sacred Toilet Rules

This activity is important especially when the school has new or refurbished toilets. A devastating fact is that newly constructed, refurbished or cleaned sanitation facilities often return to their old condition soon after the implementation is finished. This activity intends to counter this development with the setting of jointly agreed rules.

Make your toilet beautiful!

Raised personal value of an object and ownership protects objects from vandalism. Different small measures can be taken to increase ownership and prevent vandalism. Some suggestions are found in this activity sheet.

What goes into the loo?

Misuse of sanitation facilities through falsely disposed waste often poses a problem to either the facilities, or the waste water treatment plants and thus leads to major damage, system failure and costs. Therefore, students learn in this activity which objects must not be flushed in the toilet, and the impacts of wrong disposal.

Recycling Memory

Handwashing Competition

Using soap for hand-washing is the most effective and inexpensive way to prevent diarrhoeal diseases, therefore we present a fun hand washing competition you can do with your students. The activity can be played inside or outside. The students learn how germs are spread and that hands need to be washed properly with soap to get rid of the germs.

Germ Glitter Game

The Germ Glitter Game will help children learn how germs are spread. They will also learn that they must wash their hands for a full 20 seconds to more thoroughly clean them of germs. All proper handwashing techniques will be reinforced.

The Bean Bag Game

The Bean Bag Game introduces in a playful way the six critical moments when one should wash hands. Some material is required for the activity. You can prepare the activity alone or let the students craft everything that is needed for the activity.

a. Bean bag: fill linen with lentils/sand, close linen with rubber bands, cut the rest of the linen off and draw or write the respective source (as …

The Potato Experiment

This experiment shows students the importance of hand hygiene and demonstrates how fast bacteria spread by physical contact. The potato that has been touched by all students should start to rot the fastest.

On a mission: Berries, Birds and Bees

During this activity your students turn into biologists that observe their environment.

How dangerous is your Waste?

Hazardous waste is waste that poses substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment. Household hazardous waste [HHW] includes household chemicals and other substances for which the owner no longer has a use, such as consumer products sold for home care, personal care, automotive care, pest control and other purposes. Examples include drain cleaners, oil paint, motor oil, …

Clean Water with Solar Energy using a Solar Still

When water evaporates it leaves all of its impurities behind. Evaporation removes impurities, such as salts and heavy metals, and eliminates microbiological organisms. The end result is water cleaner than the purest rainwater.