If you give a child some time alone with a box, it is likely you will come back to a fort, dollhouse, or other creatively imagined "thing" that is no longer JUST a box. Kids are inherently able to create, and creators are just what we need to help clean up the mess on our Earth.
I have sourced 19 children's books on the topic of recycling to encourage young people to use their natural abilities for the greater good.
1. The Mess We Made, by Michelle Lord
| Ages 5+ | This is a vibrantly illustrated look at the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and the effects it has on the wildlife that lives near it. The story builds little by little, much like how the patch itself was created, and ends with practical solutions.
Learn more: Amazon
2. What a Waste: Trash, Recycling and Protecting our Planet, by Jess French
| Ages 4+ | Facts about waste, reusing, and information about what we are already doing to help the environment will add a ton of knowledge to any library!
Learn more: Amazon
3. Recycling in Crab-ulous! by Sophi Errante
| Ages 3+ | Hermit crabs are masterful reusers! This book offers up a multitude of ideas for reusing many household items and inspires kids to be more resourceful - like hermit crabs!
Learn more: Amazon
4. Save the Ocean, by Bethany Stahl
| Ages 2+ | Part of the series, "Save the Earth, this book uses fictional characters to tell of a very real problem and how we can fix it.
Learn more: Amazon
5. This Class can Save the Planet, by Stacy Tornio
| Ages 5+ | This promising read takes real-world problems from giant, unreachable tasks and chunks them into bite-sized goals that any kid, class, or school can tackle.
Learn more: Amazon
6. You Can Change the World: A Kids' Guide to a Better Planet, by Lucy Bell
| Ages 8+ | This book is not only full of real-world kids who are making a difference but gives kids the ideas necessary to create change in a way that is sustainable for themselves and the environment in which they live.
Learn more: Amazon
7. Zero Waste Kids, by Rob Greenfield
| Ages 6+ | Written by activist Rob Greenfield, this book includes information for kids to take on projects that result in them learning more about the world around them through the context of waste.
Learn more: Amazon
8. One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia, by Miranda Paul
| Ages 5+ | This true and inspiring story tells the tale of how convenience turned into an epidemic. She proves to young readers that one person's actions truly can change a community.
Learn more: Amazon
9. Stuff! Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, by Steven Kroll
| Ages 4+ | Follow this fictional packrat as he figures out how reducing, reusing, and recycling can help revamp his old town.
Learn more: Amazon
10. Make and Learn Projects with Recycling and Reusing, by Louise Spilsbury
| Ages 8+ | Kiddos will be inspired to take the items they already have laying around the house to turn them into new treasures! Plenty of projects and ideas fill this book!
Learn more: Amazon
11. Can I Recycle This?: A Guide to Better Recycling and How to Reduce Single-Use Plastics, by Jennie Romer
| Ages 12+ | Your kids are inspired and eager to get recycling and reusing - but what CAN and CAN'T they recycle? This guide helps clear up the fog around what can be chucked into the recycle bin.
Learn more: Amazon
12. Trash Magic: A Book about Recycling a Plastic Bottle, by Angelique J. Johnson
| Ages 4+ | Learning how plastic is made and used will help your little ones understand the importance of how our resources should be preserved.
Learn more: Amazon
13. The Plastic Problem: 60 Small Ways to Reduce Waste and Help Save the Earth, by Aubre Andrus
| Ages 9+ | This book offers refreshing challenges for tweens to take on reducing plastic in their lives. They will learn the impact of this substance and easy ways they can take charge and help reduce it!
Learn more: Amazon
14. Dear Earth…From Your Friends in Room 5, by Erin Dealey
| Ages 4+ | The students in room 5 begin a pen pal-like journey with the Earth that takes them on a path to discovering all of the wonderful things they can do to help our planet thrive.
Learn more: Amazon
15. Don't Waste Your Food, by Deborah Chancellor
| Ages 6+ | Many children do not realize food waste can affect the environment. In this story, they will learn how to reduce food waste and why it is a growing issue.
Learn more: Amazon
16. A Dolphin's Wish: How YOU Can Help Make a Difference and Save Our Oceans, by Trevor McCurdie
| Ages 4+ | Kids will love hearing what we can change in our waste habits through the eyes of this sweet family of dolphins while also learning to understand the importance of our oceans.
Learn more: Amazon
17. Recycle and Remake: Creative Projects for Eco Kids, by DK Publishing
| Ages 6+ | Chocked full of useful, practical, and engaging ways to reuse, this book of entertaining projects connects learning through hot-button environmental issues.
Learn more: Amazon
18. I'm Trying to Love Garbage, by Bethany Barton
| Ages 4+ | If your children have questions about garbage, here is the answer. This witty tale will help kids understand how garbage is created, where it ends up, and what they can do about it.
Learn more: Amazon
19. Don't Throw That Away, by Lara Bergen
| Ages 4+ | Younger kiddos will really enjoy lifting flaps to discover how plain old trash is really not just garbage! Inspired ideas for kids to learn to reuse all told through the eyes of a young superhero.
Learn more: Amazon
18 Books Like Holes for Your Adventurous Tweens To Read