This week we started a new tradition; we’re annually celebrating Earth Day in the park! We enjoyed a picnic morning tea, followed by some messy fun craft as well as bird, insect, and animal spotting with our toilet-roll binoculars.
We talked about why we celebrate Earth Day while sketching in our nature journals. We spoke about the basics of recycling, compost, water and electricity wastage as well as keeping our earth clean by disposing our rubbish correctly. Today I’m sharing 2 of the crafts we enjoyed doing for Earth Day!
>>> Mud Painting In The Park
Ages: 3 years & under
Time: prep – a long time, assembling – as long as you like
This activity was a hit with my two little-ones. It’s not every day we head to the park with a backpack of paint and paper! It took a lot of prep and organisation but it was well worth it!
You’ll Need:
Card Stock
Paint
Paper plates
Dirt & water
Sticks, leaves, feathers, rocks etc
Wipes
Paper towel
Plastic bag (for rubbish)
To Make:
1. Collect sticks and leaves to mix and paint with.
2. On a paper plate, mix paint, dirt and water until smooth.
3. Paint away! Use your hands, sticks, leaves &/or feathers etc
4. Hold paper down with rocks in the sun & allow to dry.
Tips:
> Have water, wipes and paper towel ready as this did get super messy once hands were involved!
> Have a plastic bag close by to dispose of dirty wipes and paper plates.
> Kill drying time by having a morning tea/lunch picnic or sketch what you can see through homemade binoculars.
> Keep one clean paper plate to stack any damp pictures on for the walk home.
>>> Printing With Nature
Ages: 4 years & over
Time: prep – 20-45 mins, assembling – 15 mins
I encouraged my school age nanny-kids to join in on the Earth Day craft projects and celebrations with this fun printing activity using leaves & plants from the front & backyard. We went on a hunt, collecting different shaped, sized and textured leaves we thought would work well to print with.
You’ll Need:
Paper (White)
Poster paint (Black)
Sponge rollers
Leaves/flowers/sticks/feathers etc
To Make:
1. Using the sponge roller, roll paint over the leaves, applying pressure onto the paper. For best results, use both sides of the leaves.
To follow on from this, we plan on creating a Nature Book – laminating the leaves we used to print with to the back of each page.
For more fun crafts, check out these 3D Wall Art Letters and this DIY Baby Sensory Board.
Lead by example and encourage your kids to conserve and protect our environment, because after all, they are the future. Happy Crafting!
>>> Have you experimented using nature as craft materials?
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Olivia is a career nanny of 5 years and craft extraordinaire. Having travelled Australia working with many families, Olivia now resides in Sydney and cares for 7 children aged 15 months to 1o years old. Craft + diy activities feature prominently in their daily schedule. You can follow Olivia on instagram {@oliviasfoster} for crafty ideas and activities.
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