Ways for Families to Embrace Earth Day This April

Did you know that Earth Day is celebrated each April? Earth Day is the perfect opportunity to teach your kids the importance of respecting the environment. Not only are there tons of online Earth Day resources from respectable sources like PBS Kids, but there are also several community events taking place around NYC on Earth Day (April 22, 2019).

We all know some moms who are super earthy but teaching our kids to respect the earth doesn’t mean we all have to dress/act the same way. I can embrace my love for fashion as well as my love for the great outdoors. So, with that in mind, I am sharing some ways all moms – from the crunchy moms to the fashionista moms – can teach their children the importance of respecting the earth.

Get Outdoors as a Family

The easiest and most effective way to teach your kids to love the earth is to spend time outdoors. Kids love playing outside! Their curiosity comes to life when they do something as simple as a hike in the woods. By giving them the chance to explore nature, they will come to love and respect it.

Attend an Earth Day Event

PHOTO: Timeout New York

A fun way to celebrate the Earth is to take your kids to EarthFest on April 13, 2019, hosted by the American Museum of Natural History. This all-day event is a celebration of our beautiful earth and will include concerts, yoga, hands-on activities and more.

Earth Day New York 2019 will take place on April 23rd at Union Square. This annual event has several vendors, activities, and performances geared at teaching the public how to take care of the earth.

Plant a Garden

Many New Yorkers don’t have a ton of space to grow a big garden. However, teaching kids the basics of gardening can go a long way when it comes to respecting Mother Nature. For example, if you don’t have outdoor space, plant an herb garden by a kitchen window. If you do have some outdoor space, plant a tree for each child and watch it grow as your child grows.

Volunteer in a Local Park

Earth Day is a great day to teach your kids to both respect the Earth and the importance of volunteering. Look for opportunities to volunteer as a family to do park clean-ups. These types of volunteer activities work well for families because kids can be assigned simple tasks. NYC Parks has some Earth Day events that will make this possible.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

I don’t expect you to change your lifestyle radically – I haven’t changed mine! But, if we all do something small, we can do something big for the environment. When it comes to making environmentally-friendly choices, consider the 3 R’s: reduce, reuse, recycle. Reduce your waste. For example, Amazon now allows Amazon Prime members to choose only to receive shipments one day a week. Reuse items when possible such as using reusable grocery bags. And, finally, recycle. Teach your children to recycle items rather than throwing everything into the garbage bin.