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We are a family that recycles, watches our water consumption, and overall tries to take daily steps to protect our environment.
I have discussed ways to conserve with my children and they have been ready and willing to participate. We have also upcycled plenty of items including milk jugs, egg cartons, and even spaghetti jars.
When I heard about a series of books available on iTunes called Eco Boys and Girls, I was excited to learn more and check them out with my kiddos.
After seeing these stories created for children ages PreK – 3rd grade and what they were about, I was inspired to create a Homemade Butterfly Garden with my children. We really had a lot of fun.
Written by Maria Snyder, the Eco Boys and Girls series was created to encourage good citizenship and engage youth and families around the world to be aware of, involved with, and connected to each other and the environment.
With five characters: Ernie Earth, Lulu Love, Patsy Peace, Ray Recycle, and Sammy Sun, these 6 iBooks empower kids to learn about conservation and explore creative new ways to protect the Earth.
Eco Boys and Girls motivate reading through interactive pages and vibrantly colored characters, as well as keeps a child’s interest with meaningful subjects that promote harmony. They are both educational and child friendly, and are available for $5.99 each. To view the books you will need to have an iPad with iBook 2 or later and iOS 5 or later, or an iPhone with iOS 8.4 or later, or a Mac with OS X 10.9 or later.
In addition, you can feel great about the material you are sharing with your children, because Eco Boys and Girls have been developed with STEM, UN Sustainable Development Goals, and Peace & Justice curricula. Plus, they are working with leading organizations in education, science and the environment including the National Education Association and Association of Children’s Museums.
Check out our ecofriendly craft and activity below! Just like Ray Recycle we repurposed an item in order to help the environment.
How To Make a Compostible Homemade Butterfly Garden!
What you will need:
– Cardboard Box
– Soil
– Plants
– Markers or Crayons
– Construction Paper
– Scissors
– Glue
Optional: Craft Sticks
Directions:
First start with a Cardboard box and remove any tape. If needed, glue the bottom together. Tip: If you glue it, weigh the inside down with a book until it sets.
Then, allow your children to decorate the box with markers, crayons, or gluing on construction paper designs. Next, add soil to the box filling it up as close as you can to the top.
Then add your plants. We decided to go with flowering herbs in one box and flowers in another. Optional: Create labels for the flowers with Popsicle AKA Crafting Sticks.
With the new soil and compostable material, the theory is you will have a container that will house and eventually disintegrate to feed your new plants.
To finish, you can either place this in the spot that you would like to plant it, or go ahead and dig the hole to place it directly in the ground. Since I wasn’t sure where my boxes would eventually end up, I placed a piece of wood underneath large enough to support the bottom for the short term.
Of course the best part of this process was watching my kids read together and seeing them take the messages seriously. I asked them why we would turn a Cardboard box into a planter. They said, “because it will eventually break down and feed the plants, and the plants feed the bees and butterflies”. I love that they totally get it!
What initiative have you taken to help the environment around your home? Which Eco Boys and Girls Book would your family want to read first?
To learn more about this series and to purchase the books, visit the iTunes store and search for ecoboysandgirls.
I hope your family enjoys reading these stories together, and get inspiration to create your own Homemade Butterfly Garden.
Carlee @ FLL
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