What are some ways you can celebrate Earth Day when you’re stuck at home?
If you’re like me, when you envision celebrating Earth Day, you envision a sunny, warm Spring day spent outside enjoying and celebrating nature.
Maybe heading to your favorite park or going on a hike. Taking in a little pollen and spending the rest of the day sneezing, no? Totally kidding.
I’m pretty sure you’re not envisioning a day spent cooped up inside but sadly, sometimes those things happen. Maybe it’s raining or someone’s sick or you’re practicing social distancing, are we tired of that word yet?
No matter what’s going on, you can still spend the day celebrating Mother Earth and remembering (and teaching your kiddos) why it’s so important to treat Her with respect.
Educational Ways to Celebrate Earth Day
When my kiddos were younger, one of our favorite things to do was read books so during April, we read a lot of books about the importance of protecting Earth. This list of books about protecting the Earth should keep you busy.
If it’s raining cats and dogs out, why not pop some popcorn and watch a video or movie with the kiddos to teach them how our everyday actions contribute to the health of our planet.
My favorite is definitely The Lorax! I’m not an outwardly emotional person but I usually cry at the end and my kids roll their eyes at me. Meh, what can I say.
If you have younger kids, Laura at Reduce Reuse Renew has this great list of shows, videos and movies to teach and engage them. 30 Shows, Movies & Documentaries for Young Kids
I don’t think spending the whole day watching TV is a great idea so these next ideas will help get those creative juices flowing.
Creative Ways to Celebrate Earth Day
Y’all, I do not have a creative bone in my body. Anything that I’ve made has been from a tutorial.
I keep a box in the basement of odds and ends that can be reused at a later date. My daughter has the creative gene so she’s usually the one that pulls the box out and gets crafty.
Do you have a box full of bottle caps? There are a gazillion things you can do with those. Why not make a button or necklace? I’ve got a DIY Bottle-cap Necklace tutorial right here.
Happy Science Mom has some more super creative ideas for using things you probably have laying around the house. I really love this pool table idea. How fun is that?
Tried and True Creative has these super cute tin can planters that would be such a fun project with kids.
Let them pull out their arts and crafts supplies to jazz up some tin cans and then you can plant some seeds or actual plants in them.
Another fun idea from Juggling Act Mama is to make bird feeders out of old milk jugs.
Of course, you have to plan ahead so you’ve got the milk jugs on hand but these are super easy and the kids can let their creative juices flow.
This caught my eye! I have never seen anything made out of a toothpaste tube. I happen to notice that her post was sponsored by Toms of Maine. Not surprising at all since Toms sponsors a TerraCycle brigade.
Learn more about the TerraCycle program here.
These mini pouches are so stinkin’ cute! Little girls LOVE to store things, these pouches from Persia Lou are perfect.
Instead of tossing all those magazines you’re done reading into the recycling bin, let your kiddo make some cute butterflies with them.
How pretty are these butterflies from There’s Just One Mommy?
Useful Ways to Celebrate Earth Day
Earth Day is usually one of those days I think about nature – the flowers, the trees and the bees. You may already know that the world’s bee population is in danger.
Read here for more ways you can help our declining bee population.
Our food supply will be greatly effected by a declining bee population. So this year, set up a bee station in your yard. I was able to put mine together with things I had in my garage.
Bee Watering Station
A no longer used plant stand, the base of a flower pot and some flat marble things that had been used for another project all go together to make a bee watering station.
Are you like me? Do you have a bunch of broken items scattered around the house that you’re never going to get around to fixing but hate to throw away?
Try looking up a fix it tutorial on YouTube or there’s an app called TaskRabbit I learned about. You might be able to find someone to fix your broken items for you.
Comment below and let me know which project you’re going to make on Earth Day.
Make it a green day!
Love all those ideas! Can’t wait to try some this week!!
Awesome, glad you’ll give them a try.
Love the bee watering station! As a beekeeper, I’m always happy when I see people providing safe water sources for the pollinators. They can get water in many places but this cute project will give them a safe place to drink and collect water.
Oh how awesome that you’re a beekeeper!
These are great ideas! The Lorax was always one of my favorite books to incorporate during Earth Day when I taught preschool. And making “trash monsters” from recycled odds and ends was another favorite activity. Thanks for the great ideas!
Thanks! It’s like permission to be creative again.
I absolutely love the bee watering station! I always try to have some early blooming flowers for them in the spring when they first come out and some water for them in the summer when it is so hot! I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Earth day since so much of our survival we owe to these little guys!!
YAY! I love the vibrant colors in it, they make me happy and I love to see bees stop for a drink. I need to rework my garden this year to get some more pollinator plants in there.
The bee watering station is a perfect idea, I have similar stand at home that I don’t use anymore! Thanks