Earth Day Activities for Kids of All Ages

Earth Day gives you the perfect excuse to get outside and do something in nature with your kids. It’s up to you whether or not you tie the activity into a larger discussion of environmental and climate issues. Earth Day started in 1970 as a way to raise awareness of the dangers of pollution and how environmental degradation impacts human health. Today, we can instill in our children a love and appreciation of nature and how to care for it for future generations through easy Earth Day activities that everyone in your family can do together.

As a Catholic, I’m taking the opportunity this year to introduce some ideas from the Church on the importance of caring for God’s creation. Scroll to the bottom for some Catholic resources you can tie into your Earth Day activities.

It Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated to Be Meaningful

I’m not expecting anyone to set up a chicken tractor or go completely zero waste this Earth Day. I’m sharing easy and simple ideas that get everyone involved and outside, even your teenagers. Because if it requires a million supplies and complex instructions, it’s guaranteed to not happen. But one successful Earth Day opens the door to a yearly family tradition that everyone can look forward to!

If you want to tie these activities into the liturgical year, you can consider making them a part of your family’s celebration of the Easter season, Ember or Rogation days, or the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.

Earth Day Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers (Ages 2–5)

• Spring Water Table
• Sorting Recycling Game
• Nature Scavenger Hunt
• Garden Sensory Bin

Earth Day Activities for Elementary Kids (Ages 6–10)

• Recycled Art Projects
• Nature Collage
• DIY Bird Feeders
  • Or set up a bird watching station with a camera feeder and guide book.

Earth Day Activities for Tweens and Teens (Ages 11–16)

• Create Seed Bombs – Use instructions or a kit
• Start a Small Garden Project – Let your child do the work of planning and executing a garden.
• Learn About Local Wildlife – Get resources from your library or a local nature center.
• Set Up a Compost Bin

Earth Day Activities for Kids of All Ages To Do Together

• Go on a Nature Walk – Look for specific items (bugs, plants, birds). Have a checklist to keep everyone engaged. Bring along binoculars and be sure to take pictures of what you find.
• Backyard or Neighborhood Clean-Up – If you have older kids, let them take the lead and do the planning. Many communities also plan clean-up events that your family can join. Check with your local Parks Department.
• Plant Something: A Tree, pollinators, wild flowers – anything! You can plant in your yard, in pots, planters or raised beds. You can also look for local tree planting events.
• Visit a Local Park or Nature Area – Many sites may have special Earth Day activities. Use Earth Day as the opportunity to finally visit that out of the way nature site.
• Reduce Waste Challenge – Try to give up all single use plastics for the day, or see who can create the least amount of trash.
• Encourage Discussion! – If you’re a homeschooler (and even if you’re not) you can find some great lessons on Earth Day and related environmental science topics on Teachers Pay Teachers. Make it a fun Unit Study for the whole week.

Catholic Resources Regarding Proper Care of God’s Creation

Care of the Earth is not a secular concern; the Church has said plenty through the years on how we can be good stewards of all God has entrusted to us.

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

Genesis 2:15

[God] brought things into being in order that His goodness might be communicated to creatures, and be represented by them; and because His goodness could not be adequately represented by one creature alone, He produced many and diverse creatures, that what was wanting to one in the representation of the divine goodness might be supplied by another. For goodness, which in God is simple and uniform, in creatures is manifold and divided and hence the whole universe together participates the divine goodness more perfectly, and represents it better than any single creature whatever.

St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, Prima Pars, Question 47

Man alone among the animal creation is endowed with reason – it must be within his right to possess things not merely for temporary and momentary use, as other living things do, but to have and hold them in stable and permanent possession; he must have not only things that perish in the use, but those also which, though they have been reduced into use, continue for further use in after time.

 Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical Rerum Novarum

At its core, global climate change is not about economic theory or political platforms, nor about partisan advantage or interest group pressures. It is about the future of God’s creation and the one human family. It is about protecting both “the human environment” and the natural environment. It is about our human stewardship of God’s creation and our responsibility to those who come after us.

Global Climate Change A Plea for Dialogue Prudence and the Common Good, USCCB

 Sad to say, it is all too evident that large numbers of people in different countries and areas of our planet are experiencing increased hardship because of the negligence or refusal of many others to exercise responsible stewardship over the environment. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council reminded us that “God has destined the earth and everything it contains for all peoples and nations”. The goods of creation belong to humanity as a whole. Yet the current pace of environmental exploitation is seriously endangering the supply of certain natural resources not only for the present generation, but above all for generations yet to come.It is not hard to see that environmental degradation is often due to the lack of far-sighted official policies or to the pursuit of myopic economic interests, which then, tragically, become a serious threat to creation. To combat this phenomenon, economic activity needs to consider the fact that “every economic decision has a moral consequence” and thus show increased respect for the environment. 

Pope Benedict VX, Message on World Day of Peace, 2010

If we approach nature and the environment without this openness to awe and wonder, if we no longer speak the language of fraternity and beauty in our relationship with the world, our attitude will be that of masters, consumers, ruthless exploiters, unable to set limits on their immediate needs. By contrast, if we feel intimately united with all that exists, then sobriety and care will well up spontaneously. The poverty and austerity of Saint Francis were no mere veneer of asceticism, but something much more radical: a refusal to turn reality into an object simply to be used and controlled.

Pope Francis, Laudato si’

You can also visit the Catholic Climate Covenant for more information.

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Frankly, by this time in the school year, I’m eager for an excuse to go outside, and if I can do something educational and still call it a school day-bonus! But thankfully, you don’t need to be a homeschooler to enjoy this activities. Let me know if your family does anything for Earth Day in the comments below!