Here is a free PDF worksheet of trash conversation questions. You can use these for general English discussion, ESL, and IELTS classes. Note that the word trash is mostly used in North America, the words rubbish and garbage are more common in other native English speaking countries.
Some of the challenging words and phrases you may need to go over before starting the discussion include – take out the trash, collect, special, litter, affect, reduce, reuse, dump, and secondhand.
The trash conversation questions on the worksheet are –
How often do you take out the trash? Where do you put it?
Does your country have special bins for recycling? What do you put in them?
Where does all your trash go once it has left your home? Have you been there?
On what days and at what time is your trash usually collected?
Would you say that your country is clean or is there a lot of trash on the streets?
Are there any littering laws where you live? What happens to people who litter?
What do you think is the worst kind of trash? Why is it the worst?
Are there any special groups or days where people clean up trash where you live?
In what ways does trash affect land animals? How about creatures in the ocean?
Are there many public trash cans or rubbish bins in your city? Should there be more?
Do you think that street cleaners are well paid where you live? Would you be one?
What kinds of things could be done to help reduce trash and rubbish?
Do you always put your litter in the bin? Have you ever thrown trash on the ground?
What are some countries or cities that you think have a lot of trash on the streets?
How can plastic and glass bottles be reused? Do you ever reuse them?
Are there recycling centers in your country? Do they pay for recyclable items?
Do you have a compost bin at home? What do you do with the compost?
What do think happens to rubbish on the streets when there is heavy rain?
Do you usually keep old furniture, throw it in the trash, or donate it to charity?
What would happen if trash was not collected from your home for 2 months?
Have you ever found something that you liked in the trash or at a garbage dump?
How can people make money from collecting trash and things people throw away?
Do you ever buy any secondhand goods? Why do you buy them?
If you found a suitcase full of money in the trash, what would you do?
For a similar activity, have a look at the pollution conversation questions.
