Earth Day Fun for Kids #KinderMom #KinderSmiles

Little One learned from a very early age that as citizens of the Earth, it is our duty to take care of our planet by treading as lightly as possible.  We compost, practice reduce-reuse-recycle, use cloth napkins and reusable shopping bags.  We also pack litterless lunches.  We heat the house in the Spring with passive solar energy from our green  house and when the weather is nice out, we hang our laundry out to dry.

It’s important to teach kids about taking care of our planet.

Here are some fun Earth Day activities for kids.

Pick out seeds and plants to grow  your own food in your garden

One of our all time favourite things to do in the Spring is to plan our garden. I tell Little One that this ties into the whole Earth Day theme because we’re growing our own food.  We use eggshells and dish soap to deter pests and we know exactly what’s in (or rather, not in) our food! There’s also no transportation required since we’re eating from garden to table!  Trying to teach Little One about reducing our carbon footprint has been pretty easy as she is eager to learn.

Every year, we plant:

• butternut squash
• spaghetti squash
• acorn squash
• zucchini
• cucumber
• several varieties of tomatoes
• beans, peas, snow peas
• peppers
• beets
• corn
• kale
• Swiss chard
• Heirloom carrots

On our farm, we also have:

• raspberries
• red currants
• strawberries
• rhubarb
• wild leek
• onion
• chives
• oregano
• chocolate mint
• wild mint
• asparagus
• plums
• cherries
• several varieties of apples

Organize a community clean-up

Our farm right off of one of the major highways and it’s not unusual to find trash tossed on the shoulder of the highway.  Water bottles, beer cans, and garbage from fast food restaurants from off-Island are the biggest culprits. I’d like to think that it was accidental and that people wouldn’t just toss their garbage out their car windows.  This really disturbs my six year old and whenever we go for a walk to Grandma’s farm, we pick up garbage along the way.

Organizing a community clean-up or even just gathering some friends, family and neighbours can be a fun way to do a good deed, take care of our environment and be active and outdoors with people we care about.

Make crafts out of re-purposed material

Re-purposing old materials can be a great way to create something new.  Little One attended a Grow Your Own Food workshop during March Break and I thought it was great that they used empty/cleaned K-cups and egg cartons to put soil in and grow their seeds!

The K-cups were great because they already had the puncture mark at the bottom for drainage. It was a great way to re-use something we many not have otherwise found a use for.

I’ve got a friend who teaches how to make a shopping bag out of plastic shopping bags.  It sounded like an interesting idea!  I haven’t tried this yet, but I found a site that has instructions here.

Whatever items you have around the house (that would otherwise be discarded), may prove to be great material for creating something new out of something old! Tin cans can be cleaned and painted to make a pencil holder.  Little One has even made bird feeders out of milk cartons and plastic bottles. We also like to re-purpose old, broken crayons! We’ve made DIY crayons out of old crayon pieces and we’ve made “stained glass” decorations out of shaved and melted crayon pieces.

One of the other things you can do is use your empty Kinder Surprise containers (the yellow ones inside the chocolate Kinder eggs) as a teaching aid for your kids!  CBC Parents shared a DIY Nesting Math Eggs for Kids.  Get this!  It’s a GAME!  It’s MATH!  It’s FUN! Oh, and you’re re-purposing your old Kinder containers!  CBC Parents used plastic Easter eggs for their math game, but an altered version can easily be done with your Kinder ones.

You may also like:  10 Easy Recycled Crafts for Earth Day.

Have an Eco Art Show

Kids can draw or paint what Earth Day means to them.  They can create a sculpture out of recyclables. They can also invite their friends to join in the fun and create with them.  Kids can display their art work and invite others to view their works of eco art!

DISCLAIMER DISCLOSURE: I’m a #KinderMom/Maman/Dad who is part of the KINDER® Canada influencer team; as part of my affiliation with KINDER® Canada, I am provided with special perks and products. All thoughts and opinions are my own.