Earth Day 2021

Tomorrow, April 22nd is Earth Day.  While taking care of the Earth is something we do every day, Earth Day is a chance to spotlight all the things we can do to make our planet cleaner and safer. Below are some activities that you can do with your class to help celebrate Earth Day, 2021. 

Below is some information from our PK-12 Science Coordinator, Jim Pifer.

• According to Earth Day Network, more than 1 billion people participate in Earth
• Day activities, making it the largest secular civic event in the world.
• The first Earth Day was celebrated in the United States in 1970.

Students can participate in the NEED Project's Solar Oven Challenge. Build a solar oven with your family using NEED's directions, or design your own oven. Use your solar oven to bake a favorite snack or simply see how much temperature change you can create. Make a video sharing your solar oven design. Were you able to successfully cook your food? How did your food taste? Are there any design changes you would make?  You may also post your creation on Flipgrid.

Another challenge is the STEM Oil Spill Challenge. This activity is an engineering challenge with measurement and geometry math extension problems. The goal of this challenge is to clean up all of the oil from the feathers and from the water in the time provided. Students will work in teams to devise a plan to get the oil spill cleaned up in 15 minutes of work. The learning objective is to increase understanding of an oil spill disaster and the environmental consequences.

Below are some additional links with Earth Day activities.

• Earth Week Chalk Challenge
• Discovery Education Earth Day
• Wide Open School Earth Day Resources

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources provides some ideas and resources for students and families to celebrate Earth Day. 

Younger students can participate in a scavenger hunt.

Things look different this year, but there are things students can do at home, or remote learners may want to find some ways to celebrate.

Plan a pollinator garden or rain garden
Grab a notebook and start sketching your spring and summer landscaping plans - with pollinators and storm water in mind. A rain garden features a shallow depression in the ground anchored with beautiful native plants, allowing it to capture runoff from hard surfaces like the roof, driveway and compacted lawns. The garden holds rain temporarily while plants soak it up; soil helps filter out pollutants and reduces runoff to storm drains. And the native plants in both rain gardens and pollinator gardens serve as important food sources for bees and butterflies.

Cut back on food waste
As we currently limit the number of trips to the store, being mindful of food waste holds extra importance. Iowans send more than 190,000 tons of unopened, untouched food to the landfill each year. By reducing the food you throw away, you’ll also save money on fewer groceries – up to $2,000 a year. Make a list of only what you need, and stick to it. If something goes bad earlier than expected, set up your own backyard composting operation.

Become a wild thing
Join DNR Conservation Officer Erika Billerbeck and her kids as they explore the woods in their backyard in the Wild Things video series - and find fun activities for the family you can do right at home - like building a beaver dam, learning frog calls and making maps of your favorite outdoor hideaways.

Save a drop and some cash
Save gallons of water by fixing leaky plumbing, taking shorter showers, turning off water when you're not using it (like during teeth brushing and your 30 seconds of hand washing). Save roughly one-third of the family’s water bill by replacing older fixtures and appliances. Look for WaterSense and ENERGY STAR labels when purchasing. Build a rain barrel to cut down on landscaping water use. Find more tips from the U.S. EPA at epa.gov. 

Explore Iowa State Parks in your PJs
Watch special editions of Iowa Outdoors featuring state parks, along with "Iowa by Air" and "Trail in a Minute" videos with one-of-a-kind views of state parks on Iowa PBS. 

Upcycle your stuff 
Find creative new uses for old items, like repurposing an outgrown T-shirt into a cute tote bag, shotgun shells into a wreath and more. Find more ideas on our Upcycling board on Pinterest.

Clean out under the sink
If you’re spending some extra time cleaning out the garage or under the sink, check the labels. Gather up unused household hazardous materials to later take to a Regional Collection Center when they reopen. At RCCs, household solvents, pesticides, furnace thermometers and a host of other materials can be safely disposed.   

More ideas from the DNR may be found at the link below. 

Iowa DNR-Celebrate Earth Day

And Newsela has some text sets and activities to support students in learning what they can do to celebrate Earth Day.

Sign in with your Google account, and explore with students the possibilities for caring for the Earth.