Upcycled robots, condensation science in the sun, Earth Day dirt cups, and more!
Hip hip, hooray for C O N S E R V A T I O N week! I was so glad when my oldest showed interest in this subject- what a great way to learn about taking care of our planet. At the time, my then-four-year old said, “Mommy, I want to do Plastic Week!” (I think he saw a colorful straw or something and got excited.) Hmmm…plastic? So, I started Googling and Pinteresting (both verbs now, obviously) and came up with this. And that is totally something you can do if your preschooler wants to learn about something off-the-wall: you can make anything meaningful! Also, if you’re home with your kids for spring break and it falls around Earth Day, this is a perfect way for you and your kids to celebrate our planet. Our theme for the week was caring for our Earth, taking a note from the Lorax: “Unless someone like you cares a whole lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” This was truly one of my favorite themes, and I’d love to do it again (with my now THREE sons) soon. Check out my Conservation Pinterest Board for tons of activities and learning around this important topic.
Let’s get started with some discussion questions to discover what your kids are most interested in learning more about, and use them to guide your teaching and Pinterest-ing:
- What does conservation mean? How about sustainability? How can we conserve resources so that we have enough for future generations?
- Why do we recycle? What happens to an item that gets recycled?
- What is composting? Where does the compost go and how does it help the earth?
- Why are recycling and conservation so important for the health of our planet?
- What are some ways that we can conserve resources and help others do the same?
R E A D I N G
You could probably get away with doing an entire week just around words of wisdom from Dr. Seuss and The Lorax, but here are a few other conservation-themed titles of choice:
- Planet Earth: 25 Environmental Projects You Can Build Yourself by Kathleen M. Reilly: “provides an engaging guide to the natural world and encourages children ages 9 and up to get their hands dirty and actively connect with the environment. It then introduces key environmental issues—wind and solar power, pollution, endangered species, global warming, and recycling.”
- Plastic (Bookworms: Use it! Reuse it!) by Dana Meachen Rau: “Readers will learn about five basic materials, their use, the objects created with the materials, and how to reuse or recycle.”
- E is for Environment: Stories to Help Children Care for their World- At Home, at School, and at Play by Ian James Cortlett: “These days, theres a lot of talk about being green, buying organic, and protecting our planet. But making eco-friendly choices can be hard for busy families, and helping kids think about their earths future is no easy task. Luckily, Ian James Corlettan award-winning childrens TV writer and author of E IS FOR ETHICSis back with a guide that makes saving the environment a fun family adventure.”
- Reducing Your Carbon Footprint at Home by Sarah B David: “Provides advice on how to live in an environmentally conscious way, from buying from saving energy to reducing consumption.”
M E D I A
Theme-related media: for when Mom needs a break. My go-tos are Magic School Bus (check Netflix for many, many episodes connecting to environmental science) and the very fun and educational Brains On podcast. Additionally, I like to try and find a movie on the week’s topic to show on Friday movie night.
- Lately, as my kids have grown, I’ve started searching You Tube for quick, kid-friendly introductory videos to introduce a new theme and give them some context. This week, we used this video on pollution, and this Peppa Pig clip about how to compost. (I always try and post these on my Pinterest page).
- Brains On podcast for kids: My friend turned me on to this one and thought it would be a good fit for my blog- she was right! For Conservation Week, I recommend Plastic: Why it’s everywhere. Also check out this list made by the creators of Brains On in celebration of Earth Day! Learn about, hear stories, and uncover many mysteries of our great planet.
- The Lorax: The Dr. Seuss cartoon from the 1970s is currently streaming on Hulu, or you can rent the 2012 version from Prime. Both get the point across- treat our Earth poorly, and there won’t be much earth left at all.
A R T
I have one word for you when it comes to art for this theme: UPCYCLE! As an art teacher, this is my favorite way to reduce, reuse, and recycle. My kids and I keep a closet full of ticket “garbage” items that would otherwise go out with the trash, like cereal boxes, toilet paper rolls, yogurt containers, and kleenex boxes. They’ll spend hours in our “art room” just using their imaginations and creating. So, upcycling at our house is year-round. It’s a beautiful thing.
Upcycled Robots: For Conservation Week, you don’t need a theme for upcycled art! Anything they want to create works for this theme, as long as you’re using recycled goods to make it. We used what we had, and I helped tape & glue the parts together. Here is another robot-themed art activity by Creativity Connection that is the same idea as the 3-D version, but it’s flat, so perhaps a bit easier. I love it because the background provides a neat opportunity for abstract art using paint, pastels, markers- whatever you’ve got.
Make a mosaic or stepping stone from recycled glass. I’ve done this several times with students and my own kids. Bedrock Industries in Seattle, a company that uses 100% recycled glass to make their own products, is a perfect (and also affordable) place to aquire all you need. They also have color-coordinated bins of recycled glass in their main gallery, and they sell it by the pound.
Land art: There are quite a few famous land artists, such as the well known Andy Goldsworthy, who could help introduce this beautiful art form to children. The website linked here, The Artful Parent, shows the work of Richard Schilling, who specifically speaks to children and encourages them to get outside and make art from nature. This is such an easy activity (zero set up and clean up- does it get any better?) and works well as a calming, reflection piece or a link to the week’s field trip. Here are some examples from when my middle school students and I did it on a beach field trip during an environmental science unit:
Leaf Prints: Here is a great lesson on leaf & flower relief prints using clay, by My Bright Ideas. If you don’t have a kiln, just use air dry clay. Another way to do this is by teaching block printmaking, for which you can carve a drawing of a leaf using pencil onto a thin, styrofoam sheet, then cover with ink and print it onto paper. I’ve done both of these lessons with kindergarteners, and they love the tactile experience of each, and the outcomes are lasting pieces of art that you’ll want to keep.
Balloon Earth Prints. We did this one as an Earth Day celebration and it was so much fun, and simple, too. Blow up a couple of balloons (not too big), and put out blue and green tempera paint (I used paper plates as palettes so they could spread the paint easily). Lay out butcher paper, and let them go to down with their circular, blue & green Earth Prints!
S T E M (science. technology. engineering. math.) & C O O K I N G
This theme is ALL. ABOUT. SCIENCE. Environmental science, to be precise. The opportunities in this category are endless. So, get your STEM on with some of these great activities:
Condensation Science Experiment: For this one, we just set up water in a glass bowl, put plastic cling wrap over it, secured with a rubber band, and placed a rock on top. We left it out in the sunshine, and then we waited. A few hours later, condensation droplets had formed! Here is a similar experiment by Green Kid Crafts (using slightly different materials) that shows you how to make rain!
Earth Day Dirt Cups by Mothering with Creativity: This was the best edible activity I could come up with for Conservation Week- making dirt! This one also works for Garden Theme and Bug Theme– and it never hurts to repeat a plan (anything to make your life a little easier). We had a friend over one evening, so I worked the theme into the play date, and everyone enjoyed- because, who doesn’t love Oreo pudding & gummy worms?
Water Filtration Experiment by Teach Beside Me: Kids will learn about various water sources and how to clean them using a filtration process. All you need are some cups, jars, sand, gravel, and coffee filters. This is also a great opportunity to explore your community, searching for different water sources (streams, ponds, etc.). Very fun!
Build a solar powered model kit that drives by sunlight! My boys’ received this as a birthday present in May, and it worked perfectly for our theme. Get yours on Amazon here for $13.
DIY Cornstarch Quicksand. Learn about the Earth’s sediment and create a sensory experience for little hands, all at once! Mix two parts cornstarch and one part water for a fantastically messy, earth-science activity.
Another idea for snacks is garden-fresh fruits and veggies, grown locally or in your own backyard. This would be a great teaching opportunity that allows you to discuss how locally grown, organic food promotes a healthy environment.
Finally, here is a great resource by Science Sparks that’s packed with STEM-driven projects, all based on The Lorax. There are some really fun ideas in here, like making a Whisper-Ma-Phone and building a Lorax-themed sensory tray, all of which will help kids connect to the greater goal of helping our planet.
F I E L D T R I P S
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again- field trips keep me sane. They are absolutely my favorite aspect of the themed weeks, because they are a great excuse to get out of the house. Especially during summertime, when I am parenting 24/7 with little to no breaks. Ultimately, it’s a great way to connect our learning to the real world. For Conservation Week, real-world connection is absolutely vital to the learning, because a huge goal is to take ACTION.
One of my teacher colleagues turned me onto the Brightwater Center in Woodinville- this place is AMAZING! As a visitor, you can enjoy the artwork, hike the trails, learn about clean water, and more. The mission of the organization is to “educate and motivate the public to environmental stewardship and build community.” We spent hours exploring the grounds, and we truly enjoyed the day and learned a lot about conservation.
Shoreline Recycling & Transfer Station. Not gonna lie, this one was not planned. And sometimes the best field trips, activities, whatever- happen spontaneously. We were driving in Shoreline, noticed the station, and my oldest asked if we could stop. Why not?! It was a relatively quick stop, checking out the information booth and driving through the sorting center, doing our best to find answers to all of our inquiries.
As always, if you’re not in the Seattle area, your local directory is your best friend! See if you can find similar experiences in your area. If not, a nature walk is a great way to appreciate our Earth and invite discussion about why it is so very important to conserve and sustain our resources for future generations.
