Around the world on April 22nd, many people celebrate Earth Day. On this day, we have the opportunity to discuss the importance of looking after our planet. There are many fun and educational activities to do with kids on the day. Adding this theme to your planning is made simple by using some of the engaging activities below. Let’s take a look at the top 35 Earth Day writing activities for kids!
1. How We Can Help Activity
This worksheet introduces the idea of recycling programs to kids. In the 3 separate bins, they can list items that they will reuse, throw away, and recycle. This gets kids thinking about their carbon footprint and how they can reduce it to look after the Earth.
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2. MYO Earth Day Postcards
These sweet postcards from Etsy are easy to make. Blank postcard templates can be bought from your local craft store. Hand out one to each student and have them design an eye-catching earth-day-inspired picture on the front. They should write to local businesses and ask them what they are doing to reduce waste and use less energy.
Learn More: Etsy
3. Old Enough to Save the Planet
In this beautiful book, by Loll Kirby, children will be inspired to follow in the footsteps of other young activists and think about ways in which they can help the planet. For a simple writing task, children could write to Loll Kirby and express their thoughts on her wonderful book.
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4. Earth Day Writing Prompts
This video goes through the story of Mr. Grumpy- a character who doesn’t care about climate change and makes bad choices for the environment. Students must write a letter to Mr. Grumpy explaining why his actions are damaging planet Earth.
Learn More: Imagine Forest
5. The Water Cycle Writing
Discuss each part of the water cycle, the effects of pollution, and how we can keep our oceans and waterways pure. Students then write details about the water cycle next to the picture of the ocean and the sun, which they can color once glued into their books.
Learn More: The Science Penguin
6. Renewable or Non-Renewable
For this activity, students fasten their worksheets to a clipboard and go around the room asking other students a renewable or non-renewable question from their sheet. They then mark on the sheet the other students’ answers in a different color if it’s different from their own.
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7. Bottle Cap Word Sort Game
On recycled bottle caps, write different words that your students have been learning. Mark on containers the different word endings that your students must discriminate between such as ‘sh’ th’ and ch’. They need to then put the word with its correct ending. They must then write this word on their whiteboard.
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8. Keep a Recycling Journal
Task your class with recording anything they recycle or reuse over a week. In their journal, they can also write down anything they read about recycling, or Earth day, to share with the class. After doing this, students will become much more aware of their carbon footprint.
Learn More: Amazon
9. Friendly Letter Writing
Practice the letter-writing process by writing to local companies and asking them how they plan to reduce their energy usage and recycle more. Students can bring in themes from Earth day- stating that they are wanting to ensure their local area is doing its bit for the planet.
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10. Natural or Man Made?
Discuss natural resources and man-made resources as a group. Then, give each student a post-it note and have them write down one item which is either man-made or natural. They must then add this to the board in the correct place.
Learn More: Kindergarten Boom Boom
11. Write to the Author
Share the inspiring story, Greta and the Giants by Zoe Tucker and Zoe Persico with your kids. Discuss Greta Thunberg and how, at such a young age, she has made such a huge impact. Students can choose to either write to Greta or to the authors of the book to thank them for what they are doing to raise awareness of climate change.
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12. Butterfly Life Cycle
A part of thinking about Earth Day is remembering to protect our planet; including all the animals and insects on it. Remind students of the butterfly life cycle and then set them to work writing down this process and coloring in this beautiful worksheet.
Learn More: Kindergarten Mom
13. Plant Life Cycle Worksheet
Talk about how we have such a beautiful planet and it must be protected. Plants and animals are a huge part of this beauty. Plant life cycles are so delicate; each part is such an important process. In this worksheet, students must cut out the different pictures and put them into the correct place before labeling the process below.
Learn More: Living Life and Learning
14. Water Cycle Lapbook
Have your creative students make this amazing water cycle lap book. You will need a large sheet of colored paper folded in half for the cover. Students can then fill their lap book with facts, figures, and cut-out pictures all about the water cycle and keeping our oceans clear.
Learn More: The Teaching Oasis
15. What do you Pledge?
Your students will love creating posters to display around the classroom; stating their very own pledge for climate change. Discuss our amazing planet and what we can do to help as a class. Then, get your learners thinking about one way that they can help.
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16. Writing Prompt Dangler
For this sweet activity, students draw around their hands on cardstock and cut the out. They then stick a picture of themselves on one side and an inspirational Earth Day quote on the other. Provide 3 circles of white, blue, and green card stock and have students write and draw a theme of recycling, reusing, and reducing on each of them. Lastly, attach everything with a piece of string.
Learn More: Teach with Me
17. If I Had the Power Over Trash
Discuss the story of The Wartville Wizard by Don Madden. This is a story about an old man who picks up everyone else’s litter, but one day he tires of this. He gains power over the trash which starts to stick to the people who litter. Their writing task is to write about what students would do if they had power over trash.
Learn More: Yearn for Learning
18. Roll a Story
This fun idea introduces characters ‘Captain Recycle’, ‘Suzie Re-Usey’, and ‘The Trash Can Man’. Kids roll the different printable dice to see what they will write about for the character, description, and plot. They then write their own story based on this.
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19. Earth Day Prompts
These sweet Earth Day prompts encourage kids to think about ways they can help the environment. There is plenty of space for their writing underneath and the illustrations and borders can be colored too!
Learn More: Natural Beach Living
20. Water Brainstorming Activity
Discuss the current water pollution crisis and what we can do to try and reduce our plastic usage. On your whiteboard, draw a large water droplet and ask the class to think of different water-themed words. Each student picks a word and writes about water pollution. They must use their chosen word in their writing.
Learn More: First Grade Wow
21. Recycling Writing
In this recycling-themed writing activity, students can color the adorable illustration and add their thoughts about something they can do to help the planet.
Learn More: Miss Giraffe’s Class
22. Green Action Plan
This writing assignment calls for students to produce a green action plan. This could be aimed at a local company or their school or home. The idea is that this is a call to action for reducing waste and helping the environment. It should be packed with ideas, statistics, and facts to help the reader go green!
Learn More: Education.com
23. Draw Your Own Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Poster
This fun YouTube video goes through how to draw and color your own reduce, reuse, recycle poster. This is a lot of fun to do as a class and the posters will look fantastic on your Earth day display!
Learn More: Gurzaib art
24. I Care Craft
Students use a paper plate and squares of blue and green tissue paper to make their Earth. They then cut out heart shapes and write a message on each one describing how they show that they care for the planet. These are then fastened together with a clear thread.
Learn More: A Dab of Glue Will Do
25. Don’t Throw That Away
The book, Don’t Throw That Away by Little Green Readers teaches students the importance of reusing materials using a fun, lift-the-flap theme. Challenge your students to create their own lift-the-flap poster instructing people how to reuse their recycling.
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26. Endangered Animals Report
Unfortunately, many animals are becoming endangered due to deforestation and climate change. Using this template, students can fill in the report on an endangered animal of their choice. They must find facts and pictures of this animal to complete the report and then share it with the class.
Learn More: A Storybook Day
27. Ways We Can Conserve Water Craft
For this, you will need white and blue card stock to create the cloud and raindrop shapes. The rainfall is created by folding strips of blue card and fastening them onto the cloud. Students must write ways we can conserve water on each water droplet.
Learn More: Creations by Kim Parker
28. How Can We Reduce?
Explain how reducing means using less of something, and how this is better for our planet. Have your students make a colorful poster detailing things that they can reduce in their daily lives. Have them think about each step of their day to help them with this.
Learn More: Teaching with Terhune
29. Litter Sucks
Have students create posters to display in their local community to explain why litter sucks. Include facts on litter that will shock people and inspire the local community to look after their area. Laminate these so they are long-lasting.
Learn More: Litter Sucks
30. Earth Day Superheroes
Have kids choose their own Earth Day superhero name. They then write about if they were an Earth day superhero for a day, what they would do to help the planet.
Learn More: Playdough to Plato
31. Air Pollution Worksheet
Discuss how air pollution happens when factory fumes or smoke get trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere and become harmful to life on our planet. The worksheet requires students to work with a partner to discuss different pollutants and how we can reduce these.
Learn More: Have Fun Teaching
32. Earth Day Agamographs
These fun agamographs give the viewer 3 different pictures; depending on which angle they look at it from. Super clever and fun to make! Students must color the images, cut them out, and fold them to get this incredible result.
Learn More: Art with Jenny K.
33. Earth Haiku Poems
These gorgeous 3D Haiku poems are so much fun to create. Traditionally, Haiku Poems consist of 3 lines and use sensory language to describe nature. Students chose an Earth picture to decorate and a template for their poem, and then fold and stick these together to create a 3D effect.
Learn More: Inspired Elementary
34. My Earth Day Promise
Hand out a circle of blue cards to each student. Using green paint, they use their hands and fingers to create land on the blue sea of the circle. Underneath, they make their Earth Day promise by writing about one thing that they are going to do to help the planet.
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35. Pollution Posters
These creative pollution posters should be colorful and include facts on pollution and ways to help. Students can choose from either air pollution, noise, water, or land. They can use books and google to help them with their facts.
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