How to Explain Earth Day to Kindergarteners

I was asked to do something for my sons' Montessori class for Earth Day.  After a bit of thought, the following is what I did:

I kicked things off by lending the school our boxed set of BBC's Planet Earth DVDs.  These DVDs have mesmerized my five year old, particularly the one about the oceans.

Next, I got the kids thinking about conservation by reading to them The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. This story is as relevant today as it was when it was first published almost 40 years ago.  I then had them discuss the book using questions I found at the Seussville website.

The next day, I gave an interactive presentation followed with an activity/coloring book I found on the EPA's website (which I printed double-sided, natch).

I brought props (recyclable items) and three posters:

• Poster #1 explains Earth Day and present facts about waste and recycling. 
• Poster #2 explains how Earth supports life. 
• Poster #3 explains how the students can help keep the planet healthy. 

WHAT IS EARTH DAY? (Poster #1)
It's a day each year when we remind ourselves how important the earth is and that we need to keep it clean and healthy.  Earth Day was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (following two photos courtesy of www.nelsonearthday.net) in 1970 and is celebrated in many countries every year.   

Senator Nelson said that the earth was getting very dirty.



Factories belched black smoke into the air, making our air dirty, which made people and animals sick (the free photos of pollution, below, can be found here).

People were dumping lots of chemicals into rivers that made the water undrinkable and killed fish.

People dumped garbage in places they shouldn't, which made animals and fish sick, made the environment ugly, and made our water dirty.

And people were very wasteful with water, electricity and trees.

People needed to understand that they have to help keep the earth healthy and clean.  As a result of that first Earth Day, in December 1970, Congress authorized the creation of a new federal agency to tackle environmental issues, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  Through the EPA, the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts were passed into Law by Congress to help clean up our air, land and water.  But it's still not enough.  There is still so much waste and pollution going on in the world.

Here are some facts about what we throw away (much of this is courtesy http://www.environmentalistseveryday.org):

• About 80% of what Americans throw away is recyclable, yet our recycling rate is just 33%. (Environmental Protection Agency)
• The total volume of solid waste produced in the U.S. each year is equal to the weight of more than 247,000 space shuttles. (Beck)
• The average American discards 7 1/2 pounds of garbage every day. (National Recycling Coalition)
  
• An average kitchen-size bag of trash contains enough energy to light a 100-watt light bulb for more than 24 hours. (Covanta)
• If we recycled all of the newspapers printed in the U.S. on a typical Sunday, we would save 550,000 trees—or about 26 million trees per year. (California Department of Conservation)
  
• Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to operate a TV for 3 hours. (Eco-Cycle) 
• Once an aluminum can is recycled, it's back on the grocery shelf as another aluminum can in 60 days. (www.aluminum.org)
• More than 20 million Hershey's Kisses are wrapped each day, using 133 square miles of aluminum foil.  All that foil is recyclable.  (http://www.dosomething.org)
• Every year, each American throws out about 1,200 pounds of organic garbage that can be composted. (http://www.recycling-revolution.com)
• The U.S. is the #1 trash-producing country in the world at 1,609 pounds per person per year. This means that 5% of the world's people generate 40% of the world's waste. (http://www.recycling-revolution.com)
• The energy saved from recycling one glass bottle can run a 100-watt light bulb for four hours. It also causes 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution than when a new bottle is made from raw materials. (www.recycling-revolution.com)
• Glass can be recycled an infinite number of times. (www.fairfaxcounty.gov) 
• Water covers about 70% of the planet.   Of all the earth's water, 97% is salt water found in oceans and seas.   That means that 3% of the world's water is fresh water.  But 2/3 of that is frozen in glaciers and ice caps.  That leaves only 1% of the earth's water suitable for drinking, and most of that is underground. We get most of our drinking water from surface water - water found in lakes and rivers. (facts courtesy of http://www.sscwd.org/tips.html) So, despite the fact that the planet is largely covered with water, we can only really drink a tiny amount of it.  We cannot afford to waste it.  To put this in perspective, an average person needs 2 1/2 quarts of water to drink every day.  1 gallon = 4 quarts.  Leaving the water on while you brush your teeth wastes about 5 gallons of water.

WHAT MAKES THE PLANET EARTH SO SPECIAL IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM? (Poster #2)

(photo courtesy of NASA)

It is the only planet known to support life, such as humans, plants and animals.

HOW DOES EARTH SUPPORT LIFE?

Like Goldilocks with baby bear's porridge, Earth is "just right" in many ways.


1. Breathable Atmosphere -

• Earth is surrounded by a breathable atmosphere, kept in place by gravity.  This atmosphere includes oxygen, which is the gas that is required for most living creatures.  
• Oxygen is put into the atmosphere by plants and trees.  

(photo courtesy of NASA)

2.  Climate -

• Also thanks to our atmosphere, it doesn't get too cold or too hot very quickly on Earth, and in most parts of the world it is never too cold or too hot to sustain life. 
• Our atmosphere is thick enough to protect us from the sun's most damaging rays (of course, that doesn't mean we shouldn't sometimes wear sunscreen).    

3. Water - (facts courtesy of http://www.sscwd.org/tips.html)

• Every living creature is, to some extent, made up of water and needs it to survive.  Fruits and vegetables are 80-95% water.  The average human body is about 60% water (babies' bodies are almost 80% water). Each person needs to drink about 2 1/2 quarts (80 ounces) of water each day to remain healthy.  A person can survive about a month without food, but only 5 to 7 days without water.   

4. Sunlight -

• Our planet spins once every 24 hours, which means that each part of the Earth gets sunlight regularly, and it is just the right distance from the sun for plant life to get enough light to make energy (photosynthesis) to grow.

If we didn't have even one of these things, Earth would not be what it is today.

WHAT CAN WE DO TO PROTECT LIFE ON OUR PLANET (Poster #3)?

We can do A LOT.  Here are a few ways YOU can make a difference.

It's all about the 3 R's: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE


Reduce: 

• Don't waste paper.  Most paper is made from trees and trees make oxygen we need to breathe.  
• You can use your drawing paper better.  Draw on both sides, rather on only one side.  
• At home, don't use paper napkins.  Use cloth napkins that your mom or dad can wash and you can then re-use.  
• When you want pizzeria pizza, don't get take-out.  Eat it there.  Pizza boxes get greasy from the pizza and can't be recycled.
• Don't waste energy.  Turn off lights when you leave the room.  Turn off the TV when you're finished with your program.   Better yet, watch less television.  Play games, visit a playground, draw or read books instead. It's better for you and better for the environment.
• Don't waste water. One single flush of the toilet uses 6 1/2 gallons of water - so don't flush tissues down the potty - put them in the garbage instead. 
• You use about 5 gallons of water if you leave the water running while brushing your teeth. When you brush your teeth, shut off the water when you're brushing, then turn it on again to rinse your mouth. 
• Take showers instead of baths. A 5 minute shower uses about 15-25 gallons of water. A full bathtub requires about 36 gallons of water. 
• Tell your parents not to water the lawn during the daytime because the water just evaporates into the clouds. They should water the lawn at night instead. 
• Drink tap water rather than bottled water, soda or other bottled drinks.  It is cheaper, better for you and better for the environment. Most bottled water is actually tap water, anyway.
• Don't waste plastic.  Ask your parents to bring reusable bags to the grocery store so they don't waste the paper or plastic bags.  Don't use plastic bags in your lunchbox - put your sandwich in a reusable container.  Ask your parents to buy big jars of applesauce instead of the little plastic cups - or better yet, help your parents make homemade applesauce!
• Take good care of yourself so you don't get sick as often.  You are part of the environment, too!  Wash your hands after you use the bathroom, when you come inside from playing, before you eat, and whenever they are dirty.  Cover your coughs and sneezes with your arm.  Don't put your fingers in your nose, eyes or mouth.  Wash your fruit before eating it.  Eat healthy food - lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.  Get lots of exercise.  Get enough sleep.
• Don't litter.  Put your garbage it in a garbage can.

Reuse: 

• You can reuse a lot of things - use old t-shirts or gift wrapping paper to make crafts, use newspaper comic pages as gift wrapping paper, use shoe boxes to make houses and a town for your cars.  That junk mail your parents get?  Ask them if you can use the other side of the pages as drawing paper.
• One person's junk is another person's treasure.  If your family has a lot of things they never use and don't want, consider having a yard sale or giving them to Goodwill so other people who really want them can use them.  Or, offer things to your neighbors for free on  http://www.freecycle.org. There are lots of better places to put things than in a landfill!

Recycle: 

• Lots of things can be recycled - cans and glass or plastic bottles can be melted down and made into new cans and bottles.  Used paper can be recycled to make fresh paper.  Help your parents recycle paper, cans and bottles so they don't wind up in a trash dump.  Recycling saves energy, reduces pollution, saves trees and uses less water than making things brand new. 
• Understand what goes into the recycling bin and what doesn't.  Each city has its own rules.  For example, here are some North Texas city guidelines:   Colleyville Recycling Program:
  http://www.colleyville.com/content/view/297/1/  Southlake Recycling Program:
  http://www.timetorecycle.com/residential/program_details.asp?citycode=4005  Grapevine Recycling Program:  http://www.timetorecycle.com/residential/program_details.asp?citycode=1720  Fort Worth Recycling Program: http://www.fortworthgov.org/dem/info/default.aspx?id=8434 
• Tell your parents that all sorts of things that can't go in the recycling bin can be recycled at local stores.  Best Buy, for instance, accepts batteries, computers, cell phones, televisions, telephones, fans, vacuum cleaners and printer cartridges.  (go to http://earth911.com to find out where you can recycle almost anything - you might be surprised how many different things really can be recycled). 
• Lots of other things can be recycled at your local environmental collection center (for example, the Fort Worth Environmental Collection Center accepts things like cooking oil, fluorescent light bulbs, paints, pool cleaners and pharmaceuticals).

After the presentation, I emailed the presentation material to their parents.


The big message to kids is: "You might be little, but you can make a big difference to our planet!"