Kids can make a big impact on the environment in a positive way.
Even small children.
And to make a big impact, you don’t have to do big things.
So here are 7 ways small children can save the world!

I’m only becoming more and more of an ecologist.
(I blame my obsessed-with-recycling-mom and my farmer-grandfather.)
I’m not brainwashing my kids to save the world, but I am teaching them, their actions will affect the environment – in both good and bad ways. And I’m starting conversations with them about their impact.
I hope you like these small things… that are actually BIG!

1) Pick up trash at the park or on a walk. I keep a few old plastic grocery bags in our stroller and before we leave the park each child picks up as many pieces of trash as their age. Even just one “trash walk” around the neighborhood a week will help keep your area clean and give your kids a sense of ownership for their neighborhood. Conversation questions: What would the the park be like if no one threw away their trash? Why do you think this person threw their trash on the ground when there is a trash can right next to the playground?

2) Turn off the water while you brush your teeth. I’m sure you have heard this water saving tip a thousand times. So why do you still leave the water on? You’ll waste about 2 gallons of water if you leave the water on while you brush your teeth! That would be enough water to fully hydrate my family of 6 for a whole day. Do this Experiment with your small children: Plug up the sink, brush your teeth with the water on, and watch sink fill up. Then take your cup and dip it into the water and scoop out the amount of water your child will use to rinse out their mouth. Compare the amount of water and ask if they should waste all the water in the sink, when they just need the water in the cup. Practice turning on and off the water together.

3) Visit the Farmer’s Market once a month. It might seem silly, but in this age of prepackaged/pre-prepared everything, so many kids don’t understand where their food comes from. As you walk the isles let your little ones touch the different fruits and veggies (with the vendor’s permission). Pick up ones they are interested in, to talk about the colors, textures, and taste. Let your kids ask the farmers about the food too! Buying your weekly fruits and veggies from the farmers market, even just once a month, will make a big impact on the environment: Supporting local farms, less fossil fuel than grocery store stock, and the knowledge your kids get about food and where it comes from will last a lifetime!

4) Use both sides of the paper when coloring or doing art projects. If your kids are anything like mine, they will create an art masterpiece on one side of the paper without ever being aware of the valuable paper-real-estate on the back. Or after a piece of paper has one line of color, it’s tossed in the trash. Talk with your kids about using the backside of their construction paper for drawing. This would cut paper waste in half… well… kids art paper waste! Here is a great exercise to help them understand a paper with a bit of doodling from a former owner is still usable. Take a piece of paper and make a few simple doodles. i.e. a line or a circle or a scribble. Then guide your child to use their imagination and add to the picture. This is a really fun game. You take turns adding to the picture until the paper is full. Then the next time your child comes across a “used” paper in the paper pile, they be ready to play a fun game, instead of throwing the paper away.

5) Turn off lights in a room. Electricity is generated from fossil fuels, such as coal, natural gas, and oil. If we use less electricity we reduce pollution from all of the above. This is a bigger concept for small children to understand. But they will be able to understand, the lights should be off in a room, if the room is empty, or if it’s light outside. Play a game by turning on all the lights in an area of your home then letting your child race to turn them off. Do this a few times, all the while cheering them on as they try to beat their time. Give your littles the job of turning off all the lights before you leave the house.

6) Use reusable bags. Plastic grocery bags are the worst. WORST. They don’t biodegrade, it takes 12 million barrels of oil to make the Unites States’ plastic bags a year (so it can raise fuel prices), and plastic bags kill like eleventybillion animals every year because animals can’t digest the bags they eat. (See this list for so many more reasons too!) Instead opt for good reusable cotton, canvas or denim bags. (I read somewhere polypropylene can leach toxins. Polypropylene bags are that thin bumpy material, used for a lot of the reusable bags… I searched for some more info about that but didn’t find anything conclusive about the bags, but it sill freaks me out.) Let your small children be in charge of packing the reusable bags before a shopping trip! I give my kids a penny every time they remember to pack our reusable bags. They think that is so fun!

7) Recycle and use reusable water bottles! You can just ‘copy and paste’ most of the reasons not to use plastic bags, for not using plastic water bottles as well. Instead, use a good reusable glass or stainless steal bottle (these and these are great!) But if you have to use a plastic bottle, recycle it! I know families that let their kids keep all the recycling money and that really motivates the kids to take ownership of the recycling chores. (Our city has separate cans for the recyclables and that makes it very easy to recycle. We do miss out on a payout from our recyclables, but I also don’t have to store things, or make an extra trip out to the Recycling Plant.) Consider getting a trash can/recycler combo or recycling can! It’s pretty shocking how many things can actually be recycled! Small children love to guess what things go in the recycling and what things go in the trash.

I hope you enjoyed my 7 ways small children can save the world!
Just to add to the ecology fun, I’m giving away these adorable Green Kids books.
5 paperback books that share the “going green” lifestyle with kids who can talk to animals. Now that’s something to smile about!

The illustrations are bright and beautiful, and each book’s theme is topped off with a related science section in the back.

Follow the instruction in the box below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good Luck!