Seven Ways to Model Eco-Friendly Living for Your Kids

Kids absorb what they see their parents doing. If you want to inspire your kids to adopt a mindset for eco-friendly living there are a number of creative ways you might do this. Here is a list of sustainable practices for your home that you can involve your kids in.

 

1. Conserve energy and water. Turn down your thermostat, use fans to cool in summer, and make a house policy of turning off lights when rooms aren’t occupied. Also make it a rule to not let the tap run and take shorter showers.

 

2. Encourage walking and taking public transportation. They are not only solid sustainable practices but a way for your children to enrich their awareness of the neighborhood and local environment.

 

3. Educate in a fun way: sharing interesting tidbits like the fact that one reusable bag can replace up to 600 plastic bags in its lifetime. Movies that teach us about the environment (my favorite is the animated drama Wall-E!)

 

4. Be mindful of the plastics that must be thrown away and find alternatives: cloth shopping bags, glass leftover containers, wax paper bags for sandwiches and snacks, etc.

 

5. Help your kids get involved in the outside. Encourage them to play outside. Plant a small vegetable garden or set up a bird feeder with them.

 

6. Come up with fun ways to reuse objects and keep them out of the waste stream for longer. You could save your popsicle sticks, bottles and lids, and extra clothes hangers for creative art projects. If you’re particularly handy, find ways to repurpose or rejuvenate a worn out chair or table.

 

7. Involve your kids in brainstorming about how you can do more sustainable practices in your home. Make it a point of in what you’ll are doing for the environment.

 

These are a few ideas that can help make your home a site for eco-friendly living and help your kids develop a familiarity and liking for it!

 

For more ideas, check out these articles:

https://www.allbambu.com/blog/how-to-introduce-kids-to-an-eco-friendly-sustainable-lifestyle/

https://www.tamborasi.com/eco-friendly-living-with-kids/

https://sustainableamerica.org/blog/8-tips-for-raising-eco-conscious-kids/