April 22nd is Earth Day! This week we want everyone to reflect on what they are doing to keep our planet healthy. Get your children involved in anyway you can. Recycling and controlling water waste are habits, and habits can be taught at any age.
We’ve gathered some ideas so you can reuse packaging before it makes its way to the recycling bin.
Use toilet paper and paper towel tubes to create drops and tunnels for marbles and small balls. (Note, smaller children will need supervision here, as these balls are choking hazards.) You can tape them to a wall with painters tape, or let your older kids practice their engineering skills and build something the whole family will enjoy. These can be as simple or complex as your creativity desires.
Balled up newspaper makes for a great substitute for a variety of games. It’s a safer, light-weight alternative to a baseball.
Also, just because it’s April, doesn’t mean you can’t have an epic snowball fight. Use paper! No one gets hurt, and it’s good energy burning fun.
Tape old boxes shut and you now have blocks! Build towers and knock them down. Use them to build forts. Let your child practice balancing and building, and encourage their creativity.
There are also thousands of things that you can do with empty boxes. You can decorate them and string them together to form a train. You can use rubber bands to make a guitar. Older children can use them to make dioramas and doll houses. Next time you set your children down to do some art, offer a few empty tissue boxes and see what they come up with.
That oddly satisfying feeling of popping wrapping is a great fine motor activity for kids. It helps them build finger strength, with an exciting little pop! For larger bubble wrap and pop-able packaging, lay it out on the floor and stomp on it for fun sensory exploration.
Sorting small objects such as beads, bottle caps, and small toys is a great fine-motor activity, and it helps develop math skills. Instead of lining up half-a-dozen cups, use an egg carton!
Here are a few more ideas we’ve pulled from other places on the web:
Various Crafts and Activities: https://www.fantasticfunandlearning.com/fine-motor-activities-recycled-materials.html
Puzzles: https://toddleratplay.com/2018/09/24/stickypantrypuzzles/
We hope this has given you some ideas on how to reuse and recycle your packaging.
Stay Healthy,
Ms. Ashley and Ms. Bri