Earth Day is April 22nd each year but technically should be honored 365 days a year. Earth Day was established in the United States in 1970 as a modern environmental movement. The movement came after concerns of air pollution, oil spills, water pollution and over 150 years of industrial development. The early movements shed light on the negative effects to the planet and its inhabitants and by the end of the 1970's the United States Environmental Protection Agency was established. Many environmental laws and regulations were soon to follow.
There are many activities and ways in which Activity Departments can promote and celebrate Earth Day. Here are some ideas to get you started.
1. Plant a tree. If for some reason you cannot do this, then plant shrubs, flowers, vegetables and so on. You can also do indoor gardening if you can't get outside.
2. Leave the car at home. Encourage the staff and visitors to car pool on April 22 or better yet, ride a bike or walk to work. You could have a contest of some kind and give out prizes for those who participate.
3. Earth Day discussion group. Do some research regarding the history of Earth Day as well as Earth Day initiatives and discuss with the residents. Talk about recycling initiatives, plastic bag bans, paper straws, and things of this nature. Discuss how things have changed and ask residents when they first started recycling. Download the Earth Day Word Puzzles and Activities folder and you'll find great quotes and a sensory guide that you can use as well.
4. Invite an Environmental Activist or Specialist to speak to the staff and residents. This would be a great opportunity to bring someone in who specializes in environmental issues. Promote it as a special event and invite residents, staff, family members, and volunteers. You could also work with the marketing director and have this as a community event and invite members of the community to attend.
5. Encourage staff and visitors to unsubscribe from mailed catalogues or magazines.
6. Remind residents, staff, and visitors to monitor their water and electricity uses.
7. Earth Day arts and crafts. Paint, color, or create crafts with an Earth theme. You can expand this to include trees, flowers, waterfalls, oceans, beaches, mountains, wildlife, etc. You can also make bird feeders and hang outside for all to enjoy.
8. Have a Your Junk is My Treasure Day. Invite staff and visitors to donate unwanted clothes and items. Place donated items out on tables and invite staff, visitors and residents to "shop". Just have a plan on what to do with all of the leftover items. You may need to donate to Salvation Army or Clothing Drop Boxes.
9. Get outside! If it's a nice day, then by all means get the residents outside to celebrate Earth Day. You can hold your activities outside or just simply being outdoors is wonderful. Be sure to take time for yourself as well and maybe even go for a brief hike or sit near a body of water.
10. Grab the Earth Day Word Puzzles and Activities FREE Download! In this free zipped folder, I share some fun Earth Day-themed activity worksheets. This bundle includes 8 activities: 2 word search puzzles, 2 word scrambles, 1 kriss kross puzzle, Earth Day quotes with pictures, Earth Day Sensory/Discussion guide, and grounding information.
