Here's My Great Green Idea!

I teach kindergarten. Each year, we celebrate the birthdays of all the children in the class with a big party in May, right before school gets out for the year. Last year, in an effort to go green and teach the children about the importance of conservation, we decided to skip the birthday party, and instead hold a Happy Earthday Party! In art class, the children made decorations from recycled newspaper, plastic bags, and other materials that would have otherwise been thrown away. In science class, the children started a compost pile and learned about harvesting rainwater. At the end of the week, each child was asked to bring in a special "present" for Mother Earth. One child brought in reusable thermos bottles for the whole class... no more juice boxes and cans from our classes headed to the landfill! Another child used old milk jugs to make instruments for our band members (now renamed, the Milk Shakes). On the last day of school, we asked the children to write about what they had learned this year. Almost every child mentioned the Earthday Birthday Party. One little boy said, "My favorite color used to be blue. Now it's green. I always loved my mom, but now I love Mother Earth, too. I tell everyone I know, 'Global Warming is not Cool!'" Overall, the Happy Earthday Party was a big success that has now been adopted by every school in our area. An unexpected bonus, following the unit, we have had more parent involvement than ever in the classroom, and the health and grades of the children in the class have vastly improved. Best of all, I left that year knowing the children in my class had a deeper understanding of eco-friendly living. After all, if we don't teach them, who will?