This Wednesday, April 22nd is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, a celebration of the Earth that’s steeped in our history as humans.
For as long as spring has awoken the ground from the slumber of winter, and people have worked the land, we’ve found ways to honor and thank our planet. Many cultures have long looked at springtime as the Earth’s birthday, celebrating this time of rebirth and renewal. April 22nd was declared as the official Earth Day in the 1970s, and a national movement toward environmentalism was born.
During this scary and uncertain time, there is mounting evidence that our efforts to curb travel and consumption are actually having a positive effect on the Earth, suggesting that there are lessons we could carry through to our post-social distancing lives.
For parents, there are many meaningful ways to acknowledge and celebrate this important day. It’s a great opportunity for us to teach our kids about the importance of honoring our planet in all of its beauty and wonder by actively doing something to support it—whether with a trash clean-up project, the creation of a community mural or planting a garden. Your town’s annual festivals may have been cancelled this year, but celebrating Earth most certainly hasn’t been!
Our favorite way to celebrate this special day is by throwing a birthday party for the Earth.
One of the reasons we like to celebrate this way is because birthday parties are a concept that really resonates with all children—what kid doesn’t love a good birthday party?! So, throwing a birthday party for the Earth is not only a really accessible and engaging play scenario, it’s also an age-appropriate way to establish a genuinely positive association with our planet.
If the concept seems a bit goofy, remember, children move effortlessly between reality and fantasy, and the blending of the two supports their developing sense of the world. So, for them it is an easy leap to personify our Earth just enough to throw the planet a party. And, when they do, they activate their imaginations while building a greater, more personal connection to the natural world.
Not to mention, it’s great, messy and creative fun. When kids prepare a birthday party for the Earth, they can create all kinds of treats and decorations—whatever they think they need for a bash—using the natural objects and materials around them. This kind of open-ended purposeful play is the perfect way to support creativity.
Even if young children spend their time just manipulating materials like dirt, water and sticks, they engage multiple senses and have positive chances to explore messy play. The chance to make a mess in these early years gives a foundation to a young person to “think messy” or flexibly and creatively later on.
So, start getting your kids ready for a great big Earth Day birthday celebration!
You can start collecting ideas today for what your kids think you’ll need for the party. Whether they desire mud pies, cakes or other treats, grab some water, and find a spot to decorate and celebrate. If you’d like some more ideas or suggestions, check out our Earth Day activity at Tinkergarten. Then, share your birthday party photos with us by posting them to Instagram and tagging @tinkergarten or joining our #OutdoorsAll4 Facebook group and posting them there. We can’t wait to see and share in your celebration, and we could not be more grateful for our shared home! Happy Birthday, Earth!
