Dear CDA Families,
Each year in April, many people celebrate Earth month. It is an important time to raise awareness around the issues that affect our planet and learnings ways we can improve in keeping our planet safe. There are many things we can all do to contribute to a healthier life and planet.
We invite you to celebrate Earth Month by providing your children the opportunity for learning experiences that demonstrate the wonders of nature. One of the best ways adults can help children appreciate our planet is by creating fun ways to learn and explore nature and experience new adventures.
Below is a list of activities you and your children can do to celebrate Earth Month each day:
-
Planting:
There are many ways you can create an eco-friendly space that will extend beyond Earth Month. Plant seeds indoors and observe with your child how plants, herbs, or flowers grow.
-
Reuse and Recycle:
It’s important to get children interested in saving our planet at an early age by showing them whether items being thrown out could be reused or recycled. Show kids how to separate plastics, cardboard, glass, and metals and ask them to place each type into a separate bin for recycling. Reuse containers, such as baby glass jars or yogurt containers to help children plant seeds and watch them grow into plants or flowers.
-
Bird Watching:
One of my favorite things to do is watch the different birds as they fly into my backyard and eat from a bird feeder. My favorite bird is a hummingbird, what’s yours?
-
Nature Walk:
Take your kids on a nature walk and have them collect items that exist in nature, such as leaves, pinecones, fallen branches, rocks, and any other treasures they can find.
-
Sensory Play:
As a childcare provider, I remember a typical day in my preschool, having various tables for preschoolers to explore sensory play with sand, water, rocks, seashells, and flowers. Sensory play can encourage fine-motor skills, language development, cognitive development, and explore their senses.
-
Art:
Provide paint, markers, or crayons for children to create a drawing or painting of the one thing they enjoy about nature. When your child is done, you can ask them to talk about their artwork and have them explain why they enjoy what they created. This activity helps develop children’s language by describing what they made, the intention behind it, and why they chose to create it. Another benefit children have while creating artwork, is that they develop fine-motor skills while holding art supplies. These skills are helpful to provide support with writing, using tools, and typing.
What are the benefits of nature activities for kids?
Nature provides countless opportunities for discovery, creativity, problem-solving, and STEM education. Interacting with natural environments allows children to learn by doing and experiment with ideas. In nature, children think, question, and make hypotheses — thereby developing inquisitive minds. (Bright Horizons, 2020)
“The goal of early childhood education should be to activate the child’s own natural desire to learn.” Maria Montessori
Additional Resources & Events:
Every Day is Earth Day: One San Diego
Celebrate Earth Day & Each Other Southeast SD Style! Join us for this Free, Perspective Changing Event! Because Every Day is Earth Day! Learn more at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2023-every-day-is-earth-day-one-san-diego-tickets-558212908837?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
San Diego Earth Fest
San Diego EarthFest is a FREE Earth Day celebration presented by Vegan Food Popup. Featuring over 100 eco-friendly food, product and service vendors as well as environmental, conservation and animal rescue groups. Learn more at: http://www.sandiegoearthfest.com/
San Diego Fixit Clinic
Check out all SD Fixit Clinics Events hosted throughout the County of San Diego. Learn more at: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/sd-fixit-clinics-890609
San Diego Parks Earth Day Activities
County Parks is celebrating Earth Day with a series of outdoor events. Learn more at: https://www.sdparks.org/content/sdparks/en/news-events/news-archives/EarthDayActivities.html
Earth Day of Service and Celebration – City of Oceanside
The City of Oceanside is hosting an “Earth Day of Service and Celebration” event at Buccaneer Park to promote sustainability in the region, preserving the environment and to educate the community about simple steps it can take every day to protect our shared planet. Learn more at: https://theresandiego.com/event/oceanside-earth-day/
Reading List:
Earth Day – Hooray, By Stuart J. Murphy
What’s It Like, Living Green? By Jill Ammon Vaderwood
My Friend Earth, By Patricia MacLachlan
The Lorax, By Dr. Seuss
Compost Stew An A to Z Recipe for the Earth, By Mary McKenna Siddals
Upcoming Workshops
We have FREE workshops all year round. Click the button below for more information and register today:
We’re Here to Help
For individualized assistance with resources or referrals, please contact our Family Resources Team via the contact form on our workshops page: