Best kid quote of the week…
“For the president to talk out but not just say what we should do but what will happen if we don’t stop littering…We should have one day a month that should be green day. Start putting a lot more commercials about the environment. Start putting posters up and I know it may sound extreme but maybe even paint the White House green…We should star putting a program about “green” on national TV also, so we can inspire other states, communities, families and countries.”

That’s what one child said when asked about how the public should be …read more

Handing over some major power is one good way to get a kid to do something, and it’s no different with green living. The kid with green power is going to be more involved, more in control, and thus likely more on board than the kid who just gets lectured about green living. Following are some ways to empower your kids in their efforts to live green.

Assign labels to smaller kids: Normally labeling kids is lame, but assigning them to be on light patrol, recycling king duty, or giving them another cool eco-label is fun and makes their job of …read more

Kids aren’t simply born loving nature. You’ve got to help them to develop an appreciation for nature, so in turn they want to protect this planet. Good ways to do this include:

Hold a family hiking day once a month.
Encourage more outdoor minded field trips at your child’s school.
Plan games and activities that encourage outdoor time such as bird watching, rock collecting, plant identification, nature scavenger hunts, and more.
Get involved in your local community garden, or if you have the means, planting a garden at home.
Plan green travel – i.e. for family vacations, plan a camping trip vs. a trip to …read more

As the start of school gets ever closer, school clothing is a concern. If you’re looking for low-budget school clothing that’s also a shade of green check out consignment shops, thrift store, or do a trade with other families with older or younger kids.
If you’re looking for decent priced green clothes that are new you’re more limited, because one, eco-friendly clothing can be more costly but consider that you want your kids in healthy clothes. Also, as noted here before green clothing manufactures seem to think people are either age birth to five or teen to adult. Kids clothes of …read more

Today I’ve rounded up some links you’ll enjoy. All of them meant to make the summer a little more green and fun.

Via Design Sponge
If you made this DIY twinkle board with LED lights and reclaimed wood it’d not only be totally imaginative decor for a child’s space but eco-friendly too. I love this idea.
Next a video game review I posted elsewhere – Plants vs. Zombies. I couldn’t decide if I should post this here or at my gardening blog, but because it’s not technically a green product, I reviewed it at my garden blog. However, I really think if you’re …read more

Rainforest Heroes is a site / program created by the Rainforest Action Network for kids, parents, and teachers. The goal of the this interactive site is to teach everyone about rainforest conservation.

What’s noteworthy at the site:
Rainforest Heros is packed with tools for adults that make teaching kids about rainforests easier. For example at the Teacher’s Lounge, you can download an awesome Kids Action Toolkit that’s designed to answer your students’/kids questions about rainforests, climate change, Indigenous land rights, animal and plant species, and the latest causes of deforestation. There’s also a neat FREE movie you can watch with your kids, …read more

Inhabitots is holding a really nice eco-minded family contest this week – PERFECT for readers here I think.

If you have the cutest eco-tot on the whole planet you should enter – I know some of our readers here have super cute tots so this means you. Plus the prize is really great…
The winning Eco-Cutey will be featured on Inhabitots and Inhabitat, and will receive an Inhabitat shirt and a $50 gift certificate to the Inhabitat Shop! The Inhabitat shop has all sorts of amazing eco-gear, clothing, and decor items for adults and little ones, so winning means you could kick …read more

I recently read a good article by green papa Chris Riemenschneider called “Green parenting is not always easy“. In actuality the article covers more of why green parenting was easier then Chris thought it might be. I.e. cloth diapers – kind of tough, but not so bad. The piece did get me thinking though, is green parenting harder than not?

It’s a tough call because the things that make you a green parent are debatable. For instance are you greener if you use cloth diapers but fail to recycle, or are you greener if you recycle, grow and hand make your …read more

If your little ones are going to be online, they should at least spend some of that time learning about green issues. Following are some fun websites for kids that talk about eco-topics in ways that kids will love…

I Buy Different: One of the best eco-minded sites for tweens and teens in my opinion. This site focuses on how what we buy and how much we buy have a huge impact on the environment, buying choices, and how kids who buy smart can find products and services that use less water, trees, and fossil fuels while decreasing air and water …read more

I’ve decided that maybe once a week, we’ll look at a classic green post from this blog. A post I particularly liked, that maybe you missed the first time around. This week, a green replay for the kiddos…
Kids and teens can have just as big an impact on the earth’s health as adults. More actually I’d wager. They’re small now, but have a long life of either negative or positive impacts to make on the planet. The lessons they learn, the tasks they try, the options they choose will be long lasting and passed on to their children as well.
Save …read more