5 Ways To Celebrate Earth Day With Your Kids

Kids love getting dirty. They love water, dirt, grass, animals and all the natural resources the planet provides.  This Earth Day, show your children the importance of nurturing nature through an eco-awesome activity. Here’s five activities you and your family can do to celebrate the planet and protect the environment.

Plant a Garden

Organic and locally-grown food, while vastly better for you and the planet, can be expensive.  This Earth Day, plant a garden with your little ones to teach them where food comes from and the care that goes into growing their own vegetables.  Whether you grow herbs in your window box, plant tomatoes in 5-gallon buckets, or utilize your Tower Garden, cultivating your own food is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, save money on produce and teach your children the importance of helping the earth.

Visit a Farmer’s Market

If you’re backyard garden isn’t ready just yet, don’t worry; you can still cook with locally grown produce by visiting a Farmer’s Market. Let your little ones pick out their favorite fruits and vegetables and help them prepare a healthy, organic meal at home. And don’t forget to stress the great benefits of farmers markets to your kids:

• Farmer’s markets offer the freshest available fruits and veggies because they’re straight from the farm.
• The food you buy at farmer’s markets is always in season.
• Farmer’s markets support family farmers.
• Local produce is transported short distances, minimizing the impact on the earth.

Sort and Separate Recyclables

Honor Earth Day this year by recycling. Teach your children what recycling is and how they can get involved. If you haven’t already, set up recycling bins in your home. Enlist your kids to help decorate each bin with pictures of what can go into each (paper, plastic, cans) and then give them some items to practice sorting. Explain how it’s important to put everything in the right bin so that it can be processed easily once sent to the recycling facility. Encourage your children to continue recycling by setting up a reward system. Set a goal for how many items they should recycle each week, track their progress and then reward them if they meet their goal.  Pick rewards that are eco-friendly, like a new plant or spending time outdoors. 

Pick Up Trash in Your Neighborhood

Kids are constantly picking up objects when we don’t want them to, so why not encourage them to clean up the earth? Grab gloves and some trash bags and spend a few minutes with your kids picking up litter at your local park, playground or beach.  Take time to explain why it is important to keep the earth clean and protect the environment. Explain how trash can hurt animals and how some pieces like plastic bags take longer to decompose, which can take up space on earth.

Reuse Materials for Arts and Crafts

Help save the environment by reusing old material to make new products.  Transforming an empty milk carton into a bird feeder is easy, fun and benefits the environment! Simply cut openings on opposite sides of the carton, fill the bottom of the feeder with birdseed then hang the feeder with wire on a nearby tree. You can even let your kids paint and decorate the feeder, adding their own personal touch! Or try reusing your old Juice Plus+ capsule bottles to make an on-the-go snack dispenser or fun music shaker for the kids. The possibilities are endless!

How do you plan to celebrate Earth Day this year? Share your Earth Day activities with us in the comments below.

Sources:

http://www.parents.com/toddlers-preschoolers/activities/outdoor/earth-day-activities-preschoolers/#page=2
http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/10-ways-celebrate-earth-day.htm#page=0
http://fun.familyeducation.com/earth-day-activities-and-crafts/raising-green-kids/74812.html?page=1