Hello my Omschooligans! Teacher Omi (that's grandma in Dutch) here to wish you Happy Earth Day! April 22 celebrates Earth Day, formerly called Arbor Day. It's such an important holiday that the entire month of April has come to be known as Earth Month. Do you need free printable Earth Day lesson plans for science class? Use these linked science activities in school classrooms, homeschool, scout troops, 4H and environmentalist clubs. And keep reading for a really nifty craft project to practice the four Rs of Earth Day--reduce, reuse, recycle and repurpose.
EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) has free printable Earth Day activities. Print a cartoon-style graphic novel
workbook entitled "On the Trail of the Missing Ozone." Students study
atmosphere, the importance of the ozone layer and what we can do to protect it.
Print in black and white so kids can color the booklet. Use in the science
classroom, homeschool or for homework.
EPA Recycle City features interactive games, lessons, activities, printables and online resources for kids. Students explore recycling, landfill dangers, methane gas, trash, wildlife, environmental conditions and much more. Children learn many ways to help protect the earth. This website had activities on biology, earth science, life science and health. Use these resources all during Earth Month.
DIY Handmade Seed Paper
Turn your old junk mail and scrap paper into beautiful, plantable stationery!
- Tear & Soak: Rip scrap paper into 1-inch squares. Fill a bowl with warm water and let them soak for 30 minutes until soft.
- Blend to Pulp: Place the wet paper into a blender with extra water. Pulse until it looks like a thick, watery soup (pulp).
- Form the Sheet: Dip a mesh screen into a shallow tub of water. Pour your pulp evenly over the screen and lift gently.
- The "Seed" Secret: While the pulp is still wet, sprinkle tiny wildflower seeds over the surface and press them in lightly.
- Dry & Set: Press a dry cloth over the pulp to squeeze out water. Flip the sheet onto a towel and let it dry for 48 hours.
๐ Further Reading:
: A great visual guide for the blender method.TinkerLab: Handmade Paper for Kids : If you want to dive deeper into the professional "botanical" side of paper making.Paperslurry: Paper Making Resources
EPA
Students has free printable science lesson plans geared to upper elementary, middle school
and high school students also. There are printable science
games, coloring pages,
booklets and worksheets. There are educator resources and homework helps, too. This comprehensive website
features cross-curricular, multidisciplinary, hands-on science activities.
Planet Pals has lots of free printable science worksheets, lessons, games and activities. Planets Pals features an interactive online club format.
California Academy of Sciences has a free printable earth science activities. There are lessons on different environmental features. These activities focus on the following topics. I've included more metaphors to connect earth features to the human body.
- Rocks (igneous, metamorphic, sedimentary). Rocks are the bones of our planet.
- Minerals (quartz, silica sand, crystals, MOS Hardness Scale, cleavage, color, mineral identification). Minerals are earth's tendons.
- Water (ground water, aquifers, watershed, water cycle, precipitation, percolation, wetlands, acid rain, bodies of water, oceanography, polar ice caps). Water is our earth's lifeblood.
- Soil (structure, layers, decomposition, fossils, fossil fuels, composting). Soil is the muscular system.
- Geophysics (geology, plate tectonics, magnets, earthquakes, volcanoes, the Ring of Fire, thermodynamics, geysers). Geophysics is the endocrine system.
- Ecology (land use, deforestation, slash and burn farming, fallow periods, water testing, soil evaluation). Think of ecology like healthcare for the earth. What we put into or do to our bodies heal and sustains or hurts and destroys. Likewise, what we do to our earth either helps or harms it. Environmental groups are like the earth's physicians.
May your Earth Day and every day be filled with joy and wonder in our wonder-filled world!