Fun Earth Day Activities for Homeschoolers
April is Keep America Beautiful Month, and it’s one of those trendy topics that you’ve probably never heard of, right? But something that might be familiar to you is Earth Day! This year, Earth Day occurs on the 22nd of April, and it’s a great day to get the kids involved in activities to help keep America and God’s earth beautiful.
These activities could be easy to incorporate into your curriculum, especially if you are teaching subjects such as biology, chemistry or geography. For example, an activity on water pollution fits into chemistry, the plight of lakes into geography, and endangered animals into biology. Earth Day activities can be fun and highly educational, whatever the subject or age group you teach. Some activities suiting all ages to participate in include, Bible study, making posters, creating habitats, photography and growing food.
Bible Study:
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth.” (Genesis 1:1) Start by finding your favorite Bible verses on God creating the Earth, or verses speaking on the beauty of God’s earth. Do a mini Bible study by selecting a verse to recite each day, during the same week of Earth Day, and then finish with a prayer.
Making A Poster:
Choose an animal or topic to focus on; popular choices include marine mammals, the rain forests, tigers, and local endangered animals. Then do some research and draw or find pictures. Once done, the posters can go up in your classroom space, elsewhere in the home, or even somewhere like your local library.
Creating Wildlife Habitats:
This is a very fun and rewarding activity where results will last long after Earth Day is over. A pond would attract frogs and dragonflies; create a hay meadow for butterflies and wild flowers, or plant a small wood that will entice birds and squirrels to pay visits.
Taking Photos of Local Wildlife:
Find a place nearby that is home to many species. Places like the woods, hedgerows, rivers, or even marshes are jam-packed with wild animals and plants. Using a cell phone or regular camera, allow your children to take pictures of what interests them. Remember, safety should be a priority; don’t go somewhere dangerous. If you look out for small animals and plants as well as big ones, everybody will get lots of photos. When you have finished your outing, you can put your favorite photographs on display.
Cleaning A Beach:
Do you live near a beach? The amount of trash in the oceans is truly staggering, and a lot ends up on beaches. Broken glass, syringes and rusting metal make the beach a hazardous place to visit. This is not only unsightly; the litter can entangle and kill sea animals like dolphins and turtles.
Clearing a beach is not only rewarding, but you will usually discover lots of interesting things too. Much of what you collect can be recycled, some can be a souvenir, and the rest put safely in the trash. Don’t live near a beach? No problem! Find a local area in your neighborhood like a park, hiking trails, etc to clean!
Growing Organic Foods:
Are you a homesteader, or want to start a garden? This is a long-term project that can be started on Earth Day! Vegetables could be grown in around your yard, but if that is not possible there are plenty of things that thrive indoors. Inside, you can grow herbs, tomatoes, strawberries, and even cress. Everybody will enjoy eating the fruits of your labor when the time comes to harvest your crops.
Earth Day is a good reminder for us to be good stewards of the earth God has beautifully created for us. It’s also an opportunity to involve your kids in projects that are fun, educational and helps keep America beautiful.
What are activities do you have planned for Earth Day?
Kimberly is a wife, homeschooling mom of 3, Pinterest maven, online entrepreneur, and blogger at Mom In The GO Lane. You can usually find her sipping on a hot (or cold) cup of Chai Latte and snuggling with her two bunnies. She’s passionate about encouraging stay at home moms to pursue their dreams while creating balance in the home with purpose and grace. Learn more about Kimberly on her blog Mom In The GO Lane.
