Teaching kids about the environment is crucial, and it is easy to keep it exciting with these out-of-the-box ideas.

It’s no secret our planet is facing some pretty intimidating issues. Last summer was a testament to that, as nearly three billion animals were killed or displaced by bushfires that spread across 5.3 million hectares. And the reality is that the kids of today – the leaders of tomorrow – are the ones who will need to deal with this, so it’s important that they’re brought up to value the natural world.

But, particularly with younger kids, it’s equally important to avoid overwhelming them. Ecophobia is a phenomenon that has come to the fore recently, a feeling of hopelessness that people – particularly young people – feel about climate change. A number of recent studies have found that confronting children with all the facts about our planet’s sorry state can actually be counterproductive. Rather, we should be getting them out in nature to enjoy it and appreciate it. So with that in mind, here are some ways to get your kids thinking about the environment.

1 Sort your rubbish

A super-simple way to introduce your kids to recycling is to get them to help sort recyclables and non-recyclables. Get them to look out for the Australasian Recycling Label on plastic packaging, and think about what kinds of products might be recyclable, and what ones aren’t. By getting them to actively engage in this process, you’ll be encouraging them to think about the long-term impacts of what they buy.

2 Start volunteering

This is a great way to get kids out into the environment and making a difference. Given that large-scale events are temporarily on hold this year, the team behind Clean Up Australia are running a PLOG-A-THON. What is that, you may ask? Plogging is a combination of ‘jog’ and the Swedish word for ‘pick up’ (plocka upp, for any aspiring linguists out there) and involves going on a run (or walk) and picking up rubbish along the way. A positive experience like this shows kids that their small actions can make a real difference.

3 Help out a scientist

The great thing is these days you don’t need to be a boffin to get involved in scientific research thanks to citizen science programs. These are usually free and can be done from home without any expertise. With a little bit of training (which is usually pretty straightforward) you’ll be doing valuable work for scientists and teaching your kids about the intricacies of the natural world at the same time. One popular program right now is Wildlife

Spotter, run by the Australian Museum and The Atlas of Living Australia, where volunteers sort through camera trap photos to identify native species. The best thing? There’s no commitment: you can do as much or as little as you’d like.

4 Take a walk

In Australia we’re blessed with huge expanses of bushland, so jump in the car (or even on a bike!) and head to your local national park. You don’t need to go on a huge expedition either: even a quick half-hour stroll is good, as long as you do it regularly (going either fortnightly or monthly is a good place to start). Get your child to just stop and immerse themselves. Ask them what they can hear. Talk about what they can smell. Look for local wildlife.

绿色学习

教孩子关于环境的知识不一定是无聊的。ZAC DE SILVA有一些热门提示。 HWK的家庭事务 1 10月 2020 教孩子们了解环境至关重要，通过这些开箱即用的想法，很容易让它保持兴奋。 众所周知，我们的星球正面临着一些非常令人生畏的问题。去年夏天证明了这一点，因为蔓延到530万公顷的丛林大火中，近30亿只动物被杀死或流离失所。现实情况是，今天的孩子 - 明天的领导者 - 是需要处理这个问题的人，所以重要的是他们长大重视自然世界。 但是，特别是对于年幼的孩子，避免压倒他们同样重要。生态恐惧症是最近出现的一种现象，人们 - 特别是年轻人 - 对气候变化感到绝望。最近的一些研究发现，让孩子们面对我们星球令人遗憾的所有事实实际上可能会适得其反。相反，我们应该让他们在大自然中享受和欣赏它。因此，考虑到这一点，这里有一些方法可以让您的孩子考虑环境。 1 对垃圾进行分类 向您的孩子介绍回收的一种超级简单的方法是让他们帮助分类可回收物和非可回收物。让他们留意塑料包装上的澳大拉西亚回收标签，并考虑哪些类型的产品可能是可回收的，哪些不是。通过让他们积极参与这个过程，你会鼓励他们思考他们所购买产品的长期影响。 2 开始志愿服务 这是让孩子们融入环境并有所作为的好方法。鉴于今年大型活动暂时搁置，Clean Up Australia背后的团队正在举办PLOG-A-THON。你可能会问，那是什么？Plogging是"慢跑"和瑞典语"捡起"（plocka upp，对于任何有抱负的语言学家来说）的组合，包括跑步（或散步）和捡起垃圾。像这样的积极体验向孩子们表明，他们的小动作可以产生真正的影响。