Tips for teachers, parents and kids on how to live "greener" everyday lives. Contact me at Teachgreen@AOL.com
Hi! Thanks for stopping by. Every month, I will answer your questions on
how to bring environmental studies into the classroom, how to deepen our
environmental awareness and how to live more "green". I'll suggest seasonal
activities that can help our children get closer to nature and give
suggestions on how to encourage them to be loving caretakers of our great
planet earth. I want to encourage our children (and ourselves) to fall in
love with nature. When you love something, you will take care of it.
I look forward to hearing from teachers and parents about environmental projects that you've done that have been successful. E-mail me at teachgreen@aol.com and I'll share with others what you are doing.
Also, I want to hear from Kids! E-mail your poems and stories about nature, ecology and our great Planet Earth, to Teachgreen@aol.com and I will share your feelings with other kids in the Earth Patrol Kids section at the end of this site.
Q: I'm looking for some hands on reuse activities that kidscould doat a booth for the Kids Club at the Ace Hardware Show in March. Somethingthey can make out of waste. I saw a few ideas on your Teaching Greenpage.I'm looking for something not too bulky and that can be made from commonmaterials. Any suggestions you can give will be greatly appreciated. Thankyou.Paula West, West Communications, Aitkin, MN
A: One of my favorite, easy to do, recycled art projects ismaking Paper Beadnecklaces. All you need is paper from magazines or newspaper (colorpaper ismore interesting), a pencil, some school glue or glue stick (or tape)and astring long enough to make a necklace.
Tear or cut the paper into 1" wide strips. Then cut them toabout 6" long.Wrap one piece at a time around the pencil. Close the end with a littleglueor tape. Slide the rolled paper off the pencil. Repeat until you haveenough"paper beads" to string on the string. Voila! A one of a kindnecklace. (Ifyou are using black and white paper, you can paint the beads before youstringthem.)
Q: We are sponsoring a ecological event and will be distributingfavors tochildren. Do you have any suggestions of what kinds of bags we coulduse thatare ecologically friendly? We are on a budget and we need about 150. Joe from Florida
A: There are wonderful selections of ecologically correctmaterials that youcan use. Small bags, that can be used again as a lunch bag, are nowbeingmade using cotton, canvas, burlap, or hemp. These may range in pricefrom$1.50-$3.00 per bag. String bags that start at about $1.50 per bag, arealso,great reuseable possibilities.
If you are really on a budget, you can use brown, recycledpaper lunch bags,(about $5.00 for 100). After you've filled it, turn down the top andpunchtwo holes with a paper punch. Thread a piece of raffia through theholes andtie it shut. If you have a label of your organization, stick it on thefront.It will make a nice presentation and it can be recycled when the childgetshome.
March is a wonderful transition month as nature gently awakensto welcomespring. This particular year, March is special because it is a BlueMoonmonth, one with two full moons (on March 2nd and March 31st.)
Spring Equinox (or Vernal Equinox) is March 20th. On this day,we willexperience an equal amount of day light and night. Thereafter, thehours ofdaylight will predominate. Don't forget to acknowledge this day, bysingingspring songs, dress in spring flower colors (yellow, purple and pink),orbringing daffodils to your teacher.
Also, March is the time for maple syruping and... mud.
If your family or class hasn't done it yet, now is the perfecttime to startthinking of your summer gardens, design your garden plans and order yourseeds.
Traditionally, peas and cabbage can be planted on St. Patrick'sDay. So, getthem in the ground this March to enjoy your first early vegetables oftheseason.
It's great to let children help in the garden, and even betterif they havetheir very own garden plot. It doesn't have to be big. It can even beacontainer.
Watching germinating seeds.
You will need: a clear glass jar or clear plastic cup, absorbentpapertowels, dried beans from your pantry. Line the jar with a few layers ofmoistpaper towels. Slide some beans around the inside of the jar, next tothetowels. Place the jar in a sunny spot. Keep the towels moist bypouring alittle water in the jar daily. In about 10 days you will have anamazingsprout, and be able to watch the roots and stem as they grow.
Windowsill gardening
Use soil that is formulated for indoor, container gardening. Seedlings, ofcourse, need sunshine and water, but the most successful seeds germinatewhenheated from underneath. You can "boost" their growth by placing them onaradiator. Just make sure that you have a dish or saucer underneath tocollectthe unabsorbed water. You can use the traditional plastic pot (plasticretains water better than clay, which is important to seedlings) or youcan becreative and use these bio-degradeable ideas that can be placed directlyinthe soil: Peat pots from a garden center, egg shells, and egg cartons. The most rewarding seeds to grow indoorsareherbs, lettuce, nasturtiums, and sunflowers.
Who to contact for more information on Children's Gardens:
Use either an existing calendar or make a blank one. Every day,children canrecord spring awakenings. Mark down the first blossoming branches,tulips,iris, crocus, narcissus, etc. Don't forget to mark down the rainy days,themuddy ground and the BIRDS! These are all wonderful characteristics ofspring. Continue this calendar through the months of April and May. Becreative. Use colorful markers, or cut out pictures from magazines.
I want to hear from you Kids! E-mail your poems and stories about nature, ecology and our great Planet Earth, to Teachgreen@aol.com and I will share your feelings with other kids in this Earth Patrol Kids section. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
Carol Baxter is a free-lance writer specializing in articles regarding environmental issues, with special interest in how environmental negligence impact on the health of our children, family and the planet. Her articles have appeared nationwide in parenting magazines and newspapers and in environmental publications. In 1989, she founded MY FAVORITE PLANET, INC, a company selling products that have a positive environmental impact, inspire the love of nature, and encourage kids to take care of our planet. She is currently working on the book Teaching the Green which will be an "at your finger-tips" resource guide for educators and parents, that will make accessing environmental educational materials convenient.
She is a co-developer of the Nyack Farmers' Market and presently serves as its Market Manager and Program Coordinator. She is a very involved member of the New York City based Mothers & Others for a Livable Planet and is an active volunteer for the Cornell Cooperative Extension in Rockland County. She is also a 4-H leader. Her club the Hudson River Mermaids, are focused on learning and discovering "how things work" in the natural world and are energetic caretakers of the world around them.
In 1993, she became an ardent activist against the use of rbGH hormones in milk production and was co-founder of the New York City Safe Milk Coalition, which set out to convince the New York City Public School System to join the hundred school districts nationwide to ban rbGH-treated milk in the schools.
Prior to writing, she was a professional dancer in New York City for fifteen years. She currently lives in the Hudson River Valley with her husband and two children. She can be reached at her e-mail address, Teachgreen@AOL.com
© Copyright Carol Baxter 2011
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