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A child's hands cupping a pile of dirt with an illustrated worm sticking out of it and smiling
Shutterstock.com
Infographic,

What's So Amazing About this Dirt?

Well, it's not just dirt. It's compost!

From the March / April 2022 Issue
Complexity Factors
  • Purpose
    The infographic offers advice for starting a new friendship.
  • Structure
    Information is presented in five sections of text and images around a central image.
  • Language
    The language will be mainly familiar; it includes the term nerve-racking.
  • Knowledge Demands
    Harry Potter, YouTube, and cat videos are mentioned.

Standards

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iStockPhoto/Getty Images (Leaves, Food, Dirt); Shutterstock.com (All Other Images)

What is Compost?

It’s dark, rich soil made from recycling food scraps and other natural waste. The process of making compost is called composting!

Helping the Planet

  • Composting keeps food waste out of landfills, where it releases harmful gases.
  • Compost is created by worms and other living things that safely gobble up the natural waste and poop out the nutritious soil.
  • Compost helps plants grow big and healthy.

Composting by the Numbers

  • More than 30% of what we throw out could be composted instead.
  • 2.6 million tons of food are composted every year.
  • Composting has been around for about 12,000 years.

Composting Is Easy

Ingredients:

Dead plant materials 

Food scraps

Tiny living things

Mix the ingredients together in a bin!

Write to Win

Imagine your family wishes to celebrate Earth Day. Write a short speech to try to convince them that you should all start composting your food scraps. Use details from the infographic above. Send your speech to “Compost Contest” by May 1, 2022. Five winners will each receive a Storyworks prize. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.

This infographic was originally published in the March / April 2022 issue.

Activities (3)
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
For more resources on teaching main idea, explore our Main Idea Skills Collection, which features an engaging slideshow and sharable interactive guided activity.
Activities (3) Download All Activities
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Download the Lesson Plan

Table of Contents

1. Reading and Discussing 

2. Writing

3. Ideas to Engage and Inspire

1. Reading and Discussing 

Project the infographic as students follow along in their magazines.

Prompt students to use the headline, subhead, and central image to identify the topic of the infographic.

Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to

  • explain something to you?
  • convince you of something?
  • tell you how to do something?

Have students look over the labels and images surrounding the central image. Ask:

  • How are they related to the central image? (They provide details about the main idea.)

Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, or convincing.

Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.

2. Writing

Preview the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box.

Download and distribute the guided-writing activity that goes along with the infographic.

Have students respond to the writing prompt. If you wish, send their responses to our infographic contest. 

3. Ideas to Engage and Inspire

Have students create their own infographics! Download our “Make Your Own Infographic” activity from Storyworks Digital.

Text-to-Speech