8 excellent activities for Earth Day

On Wednesday, April 22, Australia joins 175 other countries to mark International Earth Day, the world's largest environmental movement. The theme for this year's event is Climate Action, which is particularly relevant to all Australians after the extreme weather events we have all been affected by recently.

Of all the environmental challenges facing humanity, organisers of International Earth Day 2020 have identified climate change as the biggest and most catastrophic but also the challenge with vast opportunities for action and improvement.

Organisers say this year’s event is far more than just a day.

“It must be a historic moment when citizens of the world rise up in a united call for the creativity, innovation, ambition, and bravery that we need to meet our climate crisis and seize the enormous opportunities of a zero-carbon future.”

To support learning and action on climate change this Earth Day we’ve put together a selection of crafts to try with the children in your early learning service.

Earth Day seed bombs

The activity that keeps on giving! This wonderful activity offers educators a plethora of opportunities for teaching about biodiversity, plants and the importance of direct action.

Mosaic earth

Little hands will enjoy all the snipping and gluing involved in this activity and while blue and green are the recommended colours you could also try yellow for deserts.

Friendly clouds

Highlighting the importance of water in our eco-system, this simple template based activity is suitable for children of all ages and the outcomes will depend on the range of resources available for the children to experiment with. 

Smoosh painting

Relatively mess free and a great sensory activity, this simple project has a bit of a mystery outcome depending on how much smooshing the children engage in.

Sensory bottles

Sensory bottles are captivating for young children and Earth Day themes are perfect for showcasing. Consider making a selection for your infants and involving older children in making their own bottles.

Tissue paper planet

Tissue paper and glue are a match made in heaven for crafting with children. The crunchy paper and sticky glue are an irresistible combination. Use a paper plate as the canvas and blue and green tissue to create planet Earth.

Earth Day Slime

Blue and green slime…what more could you ask for? This activity requires adult supervision and special ingredients so a bit of forward planning won’t go astray.

Earth Day Puffy Painting

Whip up a batch of puffy paint in blue and green and watch the children go crazy creating their own mini planet Earth.