Watch Again

This online Marine Litter Art Workshop, Campaigning Through Art, looks at a few well known pieces of art and discusses how artists use colours and shapes to convey emotions, as well as discussing our own thoughts and feelings on the issue of marine litter and how these emotions can be put into an artwork for the competition.

Watch Again

With an input live from Arrochar, this online live lesson looks at the journey of litter from land to sea, how this is particularly affecting places like Arrochar, the negative effects of litter on the environment and what can we do about it.

With thanks to Jacqui Willis from GRAB Trust (Beaches and Marine Litter Project) for helping with the development of this lesson. 

After the lessons

Following the Live Lessons, you can take action:

Complete a Litter Survey and Investigation

A hands-on activity to measure litter levels in your school’s neighbourhood, reflecting on how this litter might reach and affect Arrochar’s ecosystem. We would encourage you to look at our resources and guidance on conducting a litter survey on our Collect Data page.

Map out a Source to Sea pathway

Invite your pupils to find out which water courses exist near their school, and to draw a map or flowchart of the pathway/s that litter could take and how it can get to the sea. Would all types of litter follow the same pathway? Would all types of litter take the same time? Which is the wildlife that could be affected along its journey?
This activity could be carried out as a simple diagram of the school area to show movement of litter to drains and streams, or something more complex, such as a report on the results from your Litter Investigation.

Create Art to spread the word

As a class or group, your pupils are invited to create a piece of art which helps to explain the problem of marine litter or that explains what you will do to help solve it.

Schools in the West Partnership, Argyll & Bute, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire can register to take part in our Marine Litter Art Competition (deadline for entries Friday 7 February 2025), but all schools are welcome to create art works to spread the word about the Arrochar Litter Sink. 

Your artwork can take any form you wish – models, sculptures, photographs, video or poetry - but make sure you comply with the following principles:

• Your artwork must reuse existing materials, such as paper, plastics and metal. You cannot buy anything as that defies the principle of waste reduction. You can use litter collected as part of your Litter Survey, however, please ensure this is thoroughly cleaned beforehand and only use non-hazardous materials. See the “Guide to staying safe” section on our Clean Up Scotland document.
• If a physical piece, you must ensure your artwork is able to be recycled afterwards. This is one of the key aspects of the STEM challenge, as you must identify a way to create your piece without using non-recyclable materials such as plastic Sellotape, paint or glue. If you collect any litter as part of your Litter Survey that is not contaminated and can be recycled, please do so, if it is not recyclable then dispose of correctly. Your artwork can be on display for as long as you wish, but we are trusting you to dispose of it sustainably when the time comes.
• Your piece must convey your message about Source to Sea Marine Litter in a fun, creative and artistic way that will be understood by a range of audiences.