Celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd
Jan Homden
Consilium Education
Earth Day is an annual event, celebrated on April 22,
‘Day events worldwide are held to demonstrate support for
environmental protection. It was first celebrated in 1970, and is now
coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network and celebrated in
more than 193 countries each year.’ Wikipedia
‘For Earth Day 2017 we are launching toolkits to
give to schools, colleges, and community groups
across the world the educational resources to
hold their own teach-ins for Environmental and
Climate Literacy or other Earth Day actions.’
Click on the Earth Day Network logo to visit their website for details.
Earth Day is the perfect occasion to
get the school community together and
organise an event that involves
everyone. Maybe start the day with a
special assembly centred on Earth Day
followed by:
An Earth Day Scavenger Hunt
An Earth Day Neighbourhood Clean-up
Plant/Adopt a Tree for Earth Day
PLANET!
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We want to inspire and equip young people to care f
An Earth Day Scavenger Hunt
Ask each family to bring a bag to put
their items into. Make a list of things to
collect outdoors e.g. a pinecone, a leaf, a
flower, a smooth stone, a stick, a
feather. Add items such as a plastic
bottle/fork/bag, a paper cup, a lollypop
stick, an item made from cardboard,
something shiny, a most unusual item!
Etc. etc.
Everyone sets off on a walk around the neighbourhood or to a nearby park and
returns when all the items on the list have been collected. Encourage the
parents to talk to the children about the items they find - what role they have
and what impact they make on the surrounding environment. For example
flowers provide nectar that bees carry back to their hives to make honey. Paper
and plastic items, on the other hand, are litter that do not belong in nature and
should always be recycled so they don't continue to pollute or harm the
environment.
Neighbourhood Clean Up
Discuss why it is important to keep the
Earth clean. Give families litter grabbers,
high-visibility jackets & recyclable
trash/bin bags before they set off to their
favourite local park, playground, or beach.
Remind young children to pick up only paper
and plastic products, and not to lift
anything dangerous, like broken glass. The
adults can handle the serious stuff.
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Planting trees for Earth Day.
‘From Senegal to Finland, from Los Angles to the
Bronx. Earth Day Network loves planting trees and
especially loves planting trees with kids. Planting trees
connects children with nature and shows them that
their hard work makes a difference in their world.’
‘Trees in a school yard improve air quality and can
reduce temperatures in warm climates by 10°F. They
provide shade in the summer, beautiful, inspiring colors in the fall, and new signs
of life every spring. They are a small environmental investment that will pay
dividends for years if not decades to come.’
If you are in the UK have a look at these websites
Click on the images to follow
the link
If you are in Ireland have a look at this
web-site - Click on the images to follow the links
Have a look at this video on
how to plant a small tree.
‘Here's a great Irish book
written by teacher and lecturer
Paddy Madden. Paddy lectures in
SESE at the Marino institute of Education. His book is
based on his experience working with children in Scoil
Treasa Naofa in Dublin. In 1985 he established Ireland’s
first school wildlife garden. He has also written 'The
School Garden - What to do and when to do it.'
An edition with a broad remit where Paddy's school experience shines through.
A very well researched book.’ Click on the book cover to follow the link
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If you are in Australia have a look at these
web-sites
Click on the images to follow the links
If you are in New Zealand have a look at
this web-site
Click on the image to follow the link
If you are living in Canada this is a
great web-site with an
introductory video.
Click on the image to follow the link
‘Schools can apply anytime, as we are in
touch with sponsors all over Canada. Applications are accepted year-round, and
we’ll keep your request on file for two years. To apply, start to complete the
following “Steps to Greening Your School Grounds,” ensure the principal
supports the project, and submit your application form.’
Perhaps finish your special community day with a school picnic or
barbeque
School picnic at the
Jerusalem American
International School
School Barbeque - The
British School, Paris
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Recycling in School
If you haven’t already set up recycling stations in and around school have a think
about the best places to install them – with easy access for everyone on campus
to use them and easy access for the collection of bins/contents.
Bins for outdoors
Bins for indoors
In classrooms have small bins so the children can learn from an early age the
process for recycling items into the paper and card bin, the plastic bin and the
compost bin.
If you have a garden at school the
compost waste can then be put into a
Bokashi Bin/Bucket. Bokashi is an easy,
no smell or mess compost process.
Fruit and veg, dairy products, meat
and bones, fish, pizza, burgers,
snack based foods, cakes, cooked
food leftovers, spent flowers can all
go into the Bokashi Bucket. Sprinkle
a handful of Bokashi Bran on top of
the food waste each time you add food scraps. Drain any excess liquid produced
using the tap at the bottom of the bucket as often as possible. This allows the
material to decompose at a quicker rate. After 2/3 weeks add the waste to a
home composter or to a wormery or dig a trench in the soil in your garden, add
the waste and cover over. Click on the image for further information
Have one in your staffroom, the kitchen, and a couple in the school
canteen. The school garden will never be the same again!
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Water conservation
Teach children about the importance of saving water e.g. washing hands –
demonstrate turning the tap off after wetting hands, turning it on again when
ready to rinse off the soap and turning it off when finished. At home, when
they are cleaning their teeth remind them to turn the tap off while they are
brushing their teeth and to turn it on to rinse, remembering to turn it off again
when they have finished.
Save Water to Help the Earth
Two friends discuss how to save water
WonderGroveKids
Click on the image to follow the link
Water Splash: an early years education pack about water
produced by WaterAid working with the Education Forum of
the Water Companies of the UK and with support from the
National Day Nurseries Association. Click on the image to
download your free pack with lots of resources and ideas to
teach water conservation to young children.
Water Aid: have a look at the Water Aid web-site
and find out how you can get your school involved. They
offer a wide range of teaching resources and fund
raising materials covering all key stages to support
learning about global water issues. Click on the image
above to follow the link.
Protect our seas
‘ORCA works in North East England to deliver
the Your Seas educational programme. Please
note that the Your Seas North Sea project runs
from March to September every year.’ Click on
the logo to follow the link.
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‘The project also delivers our Your Seas educational programme in Portsmouth
and the local area, teaching people of all ages about the fantastic whales and
dolphins that can be seen right on our doorstep and the threats that they
face. Please email us for more information on [email protected]
Working with local schools, community groups and businesses, ORCA teaches
people of all ages about North Sea whales and dolphins and the threats they
face and helps the general public understand how they can play a part in
protecting the marine environment.’
PROACTIVE EDUCATION
‘As part of our educational awareness, GreenSeas Trust
will continue with the help of our volunteer base to visit
schools and education institutes to highlight the
problems of marine debris. We want children
and young adults to come up with interesting
solutions to the problems and see where their
imagination can take them. Art work,
workshops and beach cleans are all great ways
to keep the next generation interested.’
Click on the GreenSeas logo to follow the link
ABOUT THE FOUNDATION
For more than a decade, Save Our Seas Foundation has been
dedicated to protecting life in our oceans, especially sharks and rays.
We support passionate and innovative researchers, conservationists
and educators across the globe, by funding their projects and helping
them to tell important scientific and environmental stories. Our
centres in Florida, Seychelles and South Africa are dedicated to
learning about sharks and rays and sharing that knowledge.
Click on the Save Our Seas logo to follow the link
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Earth Day 2017
Saturday April 22
A couple of activities all age groups can become involved with.
Recycled Plastic Mobile
Create a mobile which gets everyone
contributing.
Make a class, year group or whole school
mobile/s from recycled plastic. Ask each
child to bring in something made from
plastic to add to a mobile. This could be a
class or corridor display. In the classroom
you could use a hoola hoop suspended from
the ceiling and hang the children’s items
using fishing wire.
Or
Along the corridor use 2 or 3 hoola hoops
or suspend plastic netting and hang the plastic items from it.
Ask your PE Dept. for a loan of a couple of hoola hoops
Fishing wire available from most craft stores
Flexible plastic netting from hardware stores
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Students design an Earth Day
Collage/Poster and perhaps mount a school
exhibition to raise money for Earth Day
Parents could put a donation in the box on entry
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Earth Day Science Lessons- Key Stage 2
There are so many ways to connect Earth Day with science. Here are just a few
suggestions: Click on the images to follow the links.
Planets: Teach your students about our solar
system and the planets in it. This could be
followed up by using this excellent activity from
the KS2 BBC Bitesize website, also have a look at
Earth and the solar system
Water Cycle: Study the water cycle and how it
is important for our Earth.
Have a look at this video from: National Science
Foundation which ‘uses animation, graphics, and
video clips to illustrate and explain each of the
"flow" and "storage" processes in the Hydrologic
Cycle, more commonly known as the Water Cycle:
precipitation, interception, runoff, infiltration,
percolation, groundwater discharge, evaporation, transpiration,
evapotranspiration, and condensation.’
Plants: Many people plant a tree on Earth
Day. Have your students plant seeds and turn
this into a plant unit in which you learn about
and observe the plants growing.
Have a look at Plant Life Cycles from KS2 BBC
Bitesize website
Recycling: Earth Day is a perfect time to talk
about reducing, reusing and recycling.
Have a look at dealing with waste - Class Clips
from the BBC
Sustain and Build – Recycling Key Stage 2
- an introduction to the topic.
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For Early Years
Children could make binoculars to go looking in the
environment
Materials: two toilet rolls or one kitchen roll cut in half, paint brush, washable
paint, coloured craft paper, washable PVA glue, Pritt stick, string or ribbon,
safety scissors, stickers (optional), single hole punch
Children to paint the 2 paper tubes or cut coloured paper
and using a Pritt stick glue the paper around each tube.
When the tubes are dry join them together with PVA glue
– secure with a couple of elastic bands.
Remove the elastic bands when firmly joined and punch a
hole in the outer edge of each tube. Children can
decorate their binoculars with stickers. Cut the string
or ribbon – roughly 20cms, thread it through each hole
and tie.
All set to go exploring the environment!
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Have fun with Seeds
Grow Hair!
Materials:
Clear plastic cups
Compost
Grass seeds/radish seeds
A photo of each child
Sticky labels
Marker
Scoops
Click on the image to follow the link
A little watering can
Children scoop compost into their cup & sprinkle grass seeds on
top. Pour a little water over the seeds. Clean off the outside of
the cup, write their name on a label and stick it on.
Take a photo of each child maybe pulling a funny face and glue it
to the cup. Leave the cups on a sunny window sill & remember to
water.
Plant seeds in eggshells!
Click on the image to follow the link
Materials:

Empty eggshell halves from large eggs.
Potting soil.
 Easy to grow flower, vegetable or herb
seeds.
 Plastic or cardboard egg carton.
 Little watering can

When you use your eggs, be careful when you crack your eggshell. You should
just crack off enough of the shell to make it easier for you to get those half
shells. Fill the shell with your potting soil, and plant your preferred seeds in
there. Water your seeds.
When it is time to plant your seedlings, just transplant the whole shell into the
ground. Some say it is also good to crush the eggshells a little bit as they
contain nutrients that are needed by your soil and your plants. Don’t forget to
keep your planters in a place where they have access to sunlight.
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Make an Earth Day Sign
Materials:
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Blue construction paper
Glue
Dirt
Grass
Rocks
Flowers
Twigs
Use natural materials collected on a walk around your local environment to make
an Earth Day Sign. Click on the image to follow the link
Construct with Recycled Materials
Collect recycled materials so you have a stack of
supplies in your classroom all ready to go. Children
can build cities, roads, bridges, etc. using what is
available from your collection.
Click on the image to follow the link
Recycled tins and magnets on the discovery table
From:
Children will have lots of fun experimenting with
different kinds of magnets and adding magnets to
the tins to make e.g. robots
Click on the image to follow the link
From:
An assortment of magnets – click below
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EARTH DAY VIDEOS FOR EARLY YEARS
‘Earth Day is coming soon and so we wanted to give you a teacher
approved list of Earth Day Videos for kids. Lots to encourage
recycling.’
My four favourites: Click on the images to follow the links
BETSY’S KINDERGARTEN ADVENTURES: HAPPY
EARTH DAY BY JANSON MEDIA (13:07)
Told from the perspective of 5-year old Betsy. Her
teacher explains that Senator Gaylord Nelson was the
founder of Earth Day and how we can help keep our
Earth clean…even at that the young age of 5.
READING RAINBOW: HOW TRASH IS RECYCLED WITH LEVAR BURTON BY
READING RAINBOW (6:24)
This video is an amazing video that takes you
on a “field trip” to a recycling plant. Your
students will learn many important facts
about recycling. They will see the specific
steps of how cardboard and plastic products
are recycled.
EARTH DAY RECYCLING SONG LYRICS FOR
PRESCHOOL BY KIBOOMERS (1:17)
This one is great for recycling and talking
about the processes of how kids do it!
WE’RE GOING GREEN BY HARRY KINDERGARTEN
(2:39)
This video is LOADED with ways to make better
choices for the planet. This is a great video for talking
about recycling, reusing, and conserving!
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Earth Day PowerPoint:
A History of Earth Day -
From: Teachers pay teachers
Use this free 25-slide PowerPoint to teach
your students about the history and
importance of Earth Day.
Use before your Earth Day activities to
provide your students with the history and
background of Earth Day.
This is suitable for students of all ages and
all subject areas.
Click on the image above to follow the link
EARTH DAY SONGS - for Early Years & Key Stage 1
This Land - from: http://childfun.com/
(Tune: This Land is Your Land)
This land is your land, This land is my land,
Let's work together, To make it better,
From tall green forests to clear blue waters
This land depends on you and me!
Clean Up - (Tune: Twinkle, twinkle, Little Star)
Twinkle, twinkle little star
Time to clean up where you are.
Put litter back in its place,
Keep a smile upon your face.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
Time to clean up where you are.
Save, save, save the cans (Sung to: "Row, Row, Row Your Boat")
Original Author Unknown
Save, save, save the cans, throw them in the bin,
We can help to save the earth if we all pitch in.
Save, save, save the paper....
Save, save, save the bottles....
Save, save, save the plastics....
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Recycling in my Home from: Can Teach
(To the tune of "The Wheels on the Bus")
Recycling in my home goes round and round,
Round and round, round and round.
Recycling in my home goes round and round,
All through the day.
Tie up the papers and take them back,
Take them back, take them back.
Tie up the papers and take them back,
All through the day.
Crush the cans and take them back.....
Rinse the milk bottles and take them back....
Save the glass and take it back......
A can in the bin (Sung to: "Ten in a bed") By: Meish Goldish
A can in the bin
And another went in.
Recycle! Recycle!
We all recycled and added a can, There were two in the bin and
another went in. Recycle! Recycle!
(Continue to you get to five...)
This Old Earth (to the tune of "This Old Man") Original
Author Unknown
This old earth
Needs our help
To stay fresh and clean and green
With a pick it up; pitch it in; and throw it in the
can………….
This old earth needs a helping hand!
Earth Day, Earth Day, (Sung to: "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star")
Earth Day, Earth Day,
Comes once a year.
But we should make our message clear.
Love and clean our Earth each day.
Make that plan a plan to stay.
Earth Day, Earth Day,
Comes once a year,
Love and care for our Earth so dear.
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Books for Earth Day – reviewed by
Amazon
Click on the covers to follow the link
The Earth Book Hardcover - by Todd
Parr (Author)
‘With his signature blend of playfulness and
sensitivity, Todd Parr explores the important, timely
subject of environmental protection and conservation
in this eco-friendly picture book. The book is printed
entirely with recycled materials and nontoxic soy inks.
This book includes lots of easy, smart ideas on how we
can all work together to make the Earth feel good.’
Michael Recycle Paperback – by Ellie
Bethel (Author), Alexandra Colombo (Illustrator)
‘I'm Michael Recycle for all that I'm worth I'm
green and I'm keen to save planet Earth! A small
town somewhere near you is in desperate need of
salvation...from drowning in rubbish at the hands of
its lazy and wasteful inhabitants! He is a new kind of
superhero in a new kind of world.’
The Three R'S: Reuse, Reduce, Recycle
Paperback – by Nuria Roca (Author), Rosa Maria
Curto (Illustrator)
‘Attractive color illustrations and easy-to-follow
text combine to present factual information that
younger boys and girls will readily absorb and
understand. It describes the ways in which kids and
their families can avoid waste and be
environmentally conscious. Four pages presenting
activities for children appear at the back of the book, followed by a two-page
section for parents, with tips on explaining the subject in more detail.’
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Ten Things I Can Do to Help My
World Paperback – by Melanie Walsh (Author)
‘A beautifully simple book for small children where
transforming pages reveal ten things that everyone can
do to help conserve their world. Many of them, such as
turning off the television properly, walking to school and
turning off lights when leaving a room, are about
conserving energy. Others, such as feeding the birds in
winter and growing plants from seed, will encourage an understanding of nature
and conservation.’
George Saves The World By Lunchtime
(George and Flora) Paperback – by Dr Jo
Readman (Author), Ley Honor Roberts (Illustrator)
‘George is determined to save the world by lunchtime,
but he's not quite sure how. Grandpa suggests they
start by recycling the yoghurt pot from his
breakfast, putting his banana peel in the compost pile,
and hanging the washing to dry in the sun. A bike trip to the recycling bank,
charity shop and local farmers' market show how recycling and re-using
materials, can really help save the world.’
Charlie and Lola: Look After Your
Planet Paperback – by Lauren Child (Author)
‘Lola is clearing out some of her old things because she
does not want her bedroom to ever get as messy and
pongy as Marv's older brother Marty's bedroom - yuk!
Charlie persuades Lola that instead of throwing her
things away, she should recycle them. 'Recycle it?
What is that?' asks Lola.’
Charlie and Lola - Look after your planet (HQ)
Click on the image to watch
‘Lola learns all about recycling, and doing things to save the planet.
In a magazine, she and Charlie spot a competition to win a tree, if
you recycle 100 things in each of four categories. Finding it
difficult to complete this alone, they get their school involved.’
Good video to inspire the children to work together!
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The Drop in my Drink: The Story of Water
on Our Planet Paperback by Meredith
Hooper (Author), Chris Coady (Illustrator)
This is the story of a drop of water, told by a gifted
science writer and illustrated with remarkable
paintings. Meredith Hooper takes us back thousands of
years to see where the Earth's water came from, and how life began in the
oceans and later moved onto land.
Eight Books for Earth Day and Beyond by
Alycia Zimmerman from Scholastic
Click on the image to follow the link.
Free Resources to download for Earth Day
Click on the logos to follow the links
From:
Print out some of our posters and place in strategic positions around the house.
Talk about saving water when brushing teeth and saving energy by turning off
the lights when you leave a room.
From:
Earth Day Network was founded on the premise that all people, regardless of
race, gender, income, or geography, have a moral right to a healthy, sustainable
environment." Why not discuss the topic of the environment with your class take a look at our lovely supporting resources!
From:
Earth Day Crafts and Activities for Kids - The world is a fine place and worth
fighting for. Ernest Hemingway
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From:
There are plenty of fun hands-on activities for science and art to keep students
interested in learning about their world. You'll find a variety of cross-curricular Earth
Day resources to enhance your curriculum for kindergarten through twelfth grade.
Other Resources
Sing along with We’ve got the whole world in our
hands Click on the image
Barefoot Books
‘Connect with the whole wide, wonderful world with
this green book that rejoices in the marvels of our environment.’
A very informative web-site from The Welsh
Government. Lots of interesting facts, ideas,
activities and useful videos. Suitable for Early
Years and Key Stage 1. Click on the logo
Clean and Green from The British Council – to reinforce the
sorting of materials - an interactive video for use on a
whiteboard. Suitable for Early Years. Click on the image
Earth Yoga practices for children - Click on the poses to follow the link
Incorporate Yoga into your curriculum
April Theme: EARTH
‘One of the challenges readers have shared over the years is
deciding how to add yoga into their curriculum, classes, or home
life with ease and simplicity. For this reason, we have put together
this Earth Yoga post for teachers and parents that includes’:
 one breathing technique
 one focus yoga pose
 a three-pose flow sequence
 one focus yoga book
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Let’s aim to make every day an Earth Day!
With all best wishes
Jan
Jan Homden, Consilium Education
An early years teaching specialist and designer, Jan has taught in international
schools around the world.
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