10 Fun Things You Can Do To Teach Your Kids About Making the Environment Greener

Use re-usable bags for shopping. Let the kids decorate them and take them with them to the grocery store to show them off. This saves the use of plastic bags.
There are many things we can all do to teach our kids to live greener lifestyles. Children look at their parents and tend to do what they do. If you are a greenie, they will tend to naturally want to go green.  Still, we know they have a lot to learn but they won't listen to demands.  Therefore we must find innovative and creative ways to teach our children to live greener. Below are the top 10 ways you can use to teach your kids about how to make the environment a better place, while making it fun and creative.

1. Turning off the lights when leaving the bedroom or bathroom is a great way to save energy and electricity. This is a simple and easy thing children can do.  Make a game of it by watching the power bill go down together.  When you reach your savings goal, treat yourselves to a family night out on the town or a special indoor picnic on the living room floor complete with basket and blanket.  Trust me, it's fun.  Turn off the TV and enjoy.

2. Baths may be fun but taking a shower saves three to seven times more water. Set a stopwatch in the shower and make it a fun activity for the children. If the kids finish their showers before the timer goes off, they can get a reward like an extra book at bedtime.

3. Many people leave the faucet running while brushing their teeth. A friend in college made me sign a pledge vowing never to do that as it is so wasteful.  I think that is a great idea to share with your kids.  It certainly made a difference in my life.  You know some are saying that someday there could be water wars.  Let your kids know that they should always try to conserve water.  Explain to them the value of water to insure that they know of its importance and of turning on the faucet only when they are rinsing out their mouths.

4. Kids should not waste food, and by teaching them to finish their plates, they are also helping the environment become greener. Wasting food is bad for the Earth  as it wastes her resources and should not be done. Make breakfast, lunch and dinner fun and enjoyable and let the kids join in.

5. Instead of driving your kids to school, take turns carpooling the kids to school with other parents, walk or bike. In these ways, the parents are improving the air quality by reducing the carbon emissions, and the kids get to enjoy some special time with their friends or you before school.

6. Taking a walk to the library and local store is a great way of reducing carbon emissions and teaching your children that nature and fresh air are beautiful.

7. Teach your kids to recycle old newspapers, magazines, toys, Christmas and birthday cards. Put a recycling bin by the door and each time your child puts something in, like that Sudoku puzzle, let them know what a good job they have done in helping the environment become greener.

8. Instead of turning up the heat in the home when it is cold, let your kids be stylish and add on some extra layers of clothes instead.

9. Buying ripe fruit and using the remains for compost is something you can teach your children. The compost is a great way in making our soil richer. Instead of gardening by yourself, let your kids join in and have some fun with it.

10. Use re-usable bags for shopping. Let the kids decorate them and take them with them to the grocery store to show them off. This saves the use of plastic bags which helps save our environment and petroleum.

Follow these tips and help your children grow up to be socially responsible, Eco-conscious adults.

P.S.- I am really glad that you stopped by our Environmental Booty Blog and I hope you have learned or shared a thing or two.  I hope that , now that you've found us,  you won't lose us!  You can join our green living online community, subscribe to our posts download our community toolbar or Tweet with me on Twitter to stay in touch!*  - Shane :)*

4 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing these great ideas. I think the key takeaway for me is the importance of ensuring my kids understand why we do such things, not just that we do them.

    One area that wasn't called out directly was the refuse we generate from fast food restaurants. I'm as guilty as anyone about overrelying on the convenience and "fun" of fast food restaurants (e.g., playgrounds and toys), but the waste generated by all of the packaging really adds up. One of our favorite local establishments offers milk and fruit in recyclable plastic containers, but offers no recycling on premise. So, we've begun taking our recyclables home with us in one of the recyclable paper bags containing our kids meal. While relying less on such establishments may be more impactful, at least taking more responsibility for the impact of our patronage is a good start.

    Lastly, my kids seem to enjoy music with a message, like Jack Johnson's "3 R's" song from the Curious George sound track. Having other voices emphasize what us parents are trying to get across can help with the development of such a green consciousness from an early age.

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  2. Hi Shane,

    Thank you for sharing your article. Recently, I wrote an article about how children who are readily exposed to nature & wildlife focused activities while on vacation, are also taught valuable lessons about preserving our environment.

    http://www.yourtravelchoice.org/2011/02/how-children-benefit-from-an-ecotourism-experience/

    Hope that is valuable to your readers as well.

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  3. Thanks Irene for posting your article as a resource. I appreciate it very much!!

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  4. Thanks Anonymous for your comments! All good thoughts for us. I like you am always amazed at the efforts that are made without total follow through...the local eatery with recyclable containers should add a recycling receptacle duh!

    I have no fear that you can all attention to that and get it remedied!! They just need a little help...Go Green Power!

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