Teaching the young about the environment is a wonderful way to encourage green living. Learn about some great going green kid projects for children of all ages.
Getting kids involved in green themed community projects is a great way to encourage awareness and care for the environment. Going green projects for kids can range from simple and quick to extremely involved. Adapt the ideas in this article to create projects of your own that fit your specific needs.
Spend an afternoon doing restoration at a local park or nature area to help your local community. Many of these projects may already be underway and simply in need of more volunteers. Call up your favorite nature spot and ask if they have any restoration projects or needs that you and your kids can help address.
Another great project for kids of all ages is a community clean-up program. Look around your community. Are there places where trash collects along roads or in vacant lots? Kids can coordinate a great effort and if the project is successful, community clean-ups can become a group venture that you can keep going for years.
The best classroom project for your kids will vary depending on the ages of the children and the flexibility of the teacher or school. For schools that do not have recycling programs building-wide, starting recycling in the classroom is a great eco-awareness project for kids of all ages that can easily be adapted depending on what they are capable of handling. If you have a lot of success in the classroom, the students can work on getting a schoolwide program implemented.
Other ideas for schools include planning a clothing or toy swap. This encourages kids to bring in gently used toys instead of throwing them away. Then they get to take a "new to them" item home instead of buying a brand new item at the store. This saves money for parents and reuses resources. Start an indoor vegetable container garden, using containers around the classroom. This will teach both creative recycling and organic gardening.
The home is a great place to start with going green kid projects. Some of the most simple projects include making home improvements as a family to involve and teach your children about the satisfaction and empowerment of doing things yourself. A fun project to tackle with the kids is creating a more sustainable yard. Planting native plants and reducing your water use in your garden are great ways to get the kids involved and green your yard. For some helpful tips on using less water in your yard see this great article.
If your kids don't have a green thumb you can always start a project to raise money for an environmental cause. Making recycled crafts or sustainable treats and selling them in your neighborhood is a great way to raise some money for some great causes. Choose a worthy cause with your child and come up with a creative way to raise the money to donate. Use your combined creativity and you won't go wrong.