Earth Day is an annual celebration that is dedicated to protecting Earth’s natural resources. It’s celebrated on April 22nd each year. Chances are you’ve done something to commemorate this day in your home country, as it’s a day that is acknowledged in more than 190 countries to date!
The first Earth Day was officially celebrated in 1970. In the U.S., an estimated 20 million people attended inaugural events (many of them at schools and universities) to come together and appreciate, honor, and work toward creating a more protected planet.
If you’re not sure what to do with your host kids to teach them about Earth Day, check out Au Pair USA’s Pinterest board for tons of ideas. We’ll also outline a few here for you:
- Clean up. If you google “Earth Day” and the town or city you live in, chances are you’ll find a community effort being organized to clean up somewhere. Earth Day is a great time of year to come together as a community and beautify the earth around us, whether that be collecting litter, weeding the garden, or planting flowers or trees. So, consider gathering up your au pair besties and volunteering some time this Earth Day in your community.
- Recycle. Simple things like putting cans in a recycle bin or using the back of a piece of paper to make a list instead of throwing it away can go a long way if everyone makes an effort. Not only are these important steps to do and teach your host kids about recycling and reusing, you can take it a step further and make recycling even more fun by creating a recycle robot. This is a craft you can do where you create a robot only out of recycled things at home. You can use anything from cardboard boxes to loose buttons to an old key, jar lid or clothespin. The possibilities for creativity are endless!
- Garden. Earth Day falls nicely in the spring season in the U.S., which is the perfect time of year to plant some new seeds and watch them grow. Gardening is not only a soothing activity for grown-ups, it’s also a wonderful way to teach kids about plants, flowers, trees and how things grow. And, if you want to make this activity even more fun, you can create these Earth Day seed bombs using just paper, water and seeds.
- BYOB (bring your own bags). It doesn’t need to just be on Earth Day, but it’s a great day to get started bringing your own bags to the store. If you tend to forget, keep them in your car or purse. Many stores now charge for plastic and paper bags, so an added bonus of taking care of the earth is also taking care of your wallet by doing this simple act.
- Play an Earth Day game. There are tons of fun games out there that will generate conversations about the Earth. You can go on a nature scavenger hunt or play Earth Day bingo using this template.
- Eat some dirt. Well, not exactly! You can create some Earth Day dirt cups though using delicious ingredients like chocolate pudding, Oreo cookies, shredded coconut, green food coloring, and gummy worms. This is a super fun activity to do with your host kids and a yummy treat to enjoy together later. Check out this fun recipe!
Whatever you decide to do this Earth Day, we hope you’ll take some time to appreciate and celebrate this beautiful planet we all call home, no matter which country you’re from. The Earth unites us all!
