10 Ways to Celebrate Earth Day

 

April 22nd is Earth Day! Here are some fun ways to celebrate and care for our planet:

Pick up trash in your neighborhood

Grab some garbage bags and take a walk around your neighborhood or a favorite park to pick up trash. My kids like to make it a competition to see who can collect the most.

Plant a tree

Take a trip to a local nursery and choose a tree to plant in your yard or to give as a gift.

Start a garden

Start a small (or big) garden in your yard. Plant veggies that you and your children enjoy or plant flowers for local pollinators.

Start a compost bin

Composting is a great way to reduce household waste and it's a fun way to introduce your kids to decomposition and the nutrient cycle. For instructions for setting up a simple backyard bin, check out my Composting with Kids post.

Walk or bike instead of drive

Do your close-to-home errands or activities by foot or bicycle.

Get outside!

Take a nature walk in the park, take a hike, go on a picnic, play in your yard, get outside and enjoy our beautiful planet!

Make a bird feeder

One of my favorite simple bird feeders to make with kids is pinecone bird feeders. To make one, you will need:
-a pinecone 
-a butter knife or spoon
-natural peanut butter (the kind without all the added sweetners and additives)
-bird seed
-string
-scissors

Gather a couple pinecones from your yard or neighborhood and tie a loop with string onto the top of the pinecone, so it can be hung.

Apply a thin layer of peanut butter to the pinecone with the butter knife and then roll the pinecone in some wild bird seed. 

Then hang your bird feeder from a tree branch in your yard.

Here are a few more diy bird feeder ideas you could try:

-Gelatin Bird Seed Ornaments from Little Bins for Little Hands

-Recycled Plastic Bottle Bird Feeder from Welcome to Nana's

Make art with recycled materials

Collect some recyclables like plastic bottles, cans, bottle caps, toilet paper and paper towel rolls, plastic containers, etc... and then challenge your kids to make art out of it.

Make a pollinator watering hole

Pollinators like bees and butterflies need shallow safe places to stop for a drink of water. Grab an old bowl or pan that you don't mind giving up to the backyard and have your kids collect some pebbles and clean them. 

Fill the bowl or pan with clean pebbles, then add water. Fill it so that the tops of the upper layer of pebbles stick out of the water. This provides safe places for pollinators to land and drink.

Now just place your watering hole in your yard, preferably in a place that gets some sun. Refresh water daily and clean periodically.

Make recycled paper

Did you know that you can make new paper out of old paper? All you need is old paper scraps (construction paper, tissue paper, newspaper, lined paper- it will all work), scissors, some sort of screen, a bowl, a towel or sponge, and some water.

You can find full instructions here: Christana Walther- How to Make Paper at Home. Or check out this YouTube tutorial: 

Another fun recycled paper activity to try is making recycled paper seed bombs. My girls and I made some as Valentine's Day gifts this year and they turned out really lovely! 

Here's the link to the instructions: DIY Recycled Paper Seed Bombs

If you enjoyed this post, check out:

Learning in the Garden

42 Nature Study Ideas

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