Celebrating Earth Day with Books!

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Hello and Happy Earth Day week! I know that really isn’t a thing, but it should be. We should always try and help this earth. Right? Right. I have come up with a plan of action this week to celebrate Earth Day 2015. I thought what better way to celebrate this wonderful planet than with some books to inspire children to care about the environment?

I think it’s incredibly important to introduce them to the earth as a friend. As with any friendships, telling stories is how friendships grow. If you are anything like us, then you always have some sort of background noise on, be it the TV or radio. This week my family will be turning off the electronics and focusing on reading and doing some Earth Day activities.

I have made a list of 5 books we will be reading for the week and hopefully this weekend we can get outside to better the Earth. We are going to start a garden and plant some flowers and I’m hoping that the weekend will bring us good weather so we can get to it.

1. The Lorax – by Dr. Seuss 

The Lorax was published in 1971, one year after Earth Day was started. This book is about a boy who is looking for answers while living in a very ruined town. He goes to the Once-ler, an elderly manufacture, and asks to hear the story of the Lorax. The Once-ler, Doc Brown, tells the boy how the town came to be ruined, and teaches him how to change it, while also teaching young readers not only about the importance of seeing the beauty in the world around us, but also about our responsibility to protect it.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Lorax-Classic-Seuss-Dr/dp/0394823370
2. The Barefoot Book of Earth Tales

Learn how different cultures around the world set out to live in harmony with the natural world in this popular anthology. Earth Tales introduces children to many different myths and legends surrounding the creation of Earth and why things are the way they are. From Wales to Kazakhstan, many cultures are featured in this wonderful anthology of stories, and each story is followed by a hands-on activity that promotes green living and reinforces the eco-messages of the stories.

http://store.barefootbooks.com/the-barefoot-book-of-earth-tales-4224.html

3. Earth Day Every Day – by Lisa Bullard

In this book, Trina explains all about Earth Day and what it means to find ways to fix the Earth. She talks about being an Earthling – which means she lives on planet Earth – and how they made the Earth a mess and how they should fix it! Trina plants trees with her class and forms an Earth Day club with her friends. There is also an activity included on how to make your own worm compost bin.

http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Day-Every-Cloverleaf-Books/dp/0761385126
4. Earth Day (Little Critter) – by Mercer Meyer

After watching a school film about climate changes, Little Critter decides to do his part to help slow down global warming. With help from his friends and family, Little Critter begins to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Together they learn about the importance of not wasting water or energy.

http://www.amazon.com/Its-Earth-Day-Little-Critter/dp/0060539593
5. What’s This? A Seed Story – by Caroline Mockford

A story about a young girl who stumbles upon a seed, helps it grow throughout all of spring, and then shares the seeds with her classmates so they can all plant sunflowers together the following spring! What’s This? will teach the values of patience and generosity just in time for children to start planting their own flowers! Includes notes about roots, shoots, flowers and seeds.

http://store.barefootbooks.com/what-s-this-1.html

Why not make Earth Day a day, not only for growing the Earth into a beautiful planet, but also to grow our childrens minds? Sitting down as a family and reading a wonderful story will not only help you get some much needed cuddle time (a huge bonus), but will also help your child/children learn something new with you. I hope you and your family enjoy these books as much as my family does. Let me know if you have any other Earth Day book suggestions to share? We always love discovering new books together!