How to Talk about the Environment with your Kids
We are surrounded by nature in our daily lives, whether it is a park, a forest, an ocean, or our own gardens. Our interaction with the environment is vital to our wellbeing and survival, therefore, we need to educate young children about the current status of the earth and ways that they can participate in making positive change in our world.
However, talking about all the current environmental problems with your kids can be overwhelming. It's difficult to find the balance between sharing too much information or sharing too little. Environmental education is essential to our children because they are the future generation and hold the power to make a difference.
For our little listeners, here are our new audio channels curated for children on Pollution Sustainable Solutions Endangerment and Extinction of animals Climate Change
Here are five suggestions to make it easier to communicate with your kids about the environment:
Be Honest: Don't try to censor the information by turning off the news and/or avoiding the topic in conversation. Instead, talk to and educate your kids about environmental issues by playing the news and sharing articles and books.
Use Child-Friendly Language: When talking to your children about the environment, use simple language that you're confident your child/children will understand. Avoid long, complicated, scientific words that might confuse them more. Use examples rather than specific terminology.
Some important key words that address environmental issues and solutions are:
Climate Change: major changes in temperature, rainfall, snow, or wind patterns lasting for many years. Climate changes can be caused by natural factors or human activities.
Endangered: An animal and/or plant that is in danger of disappearing forever. This can occur due to natural factors and/or by human activities.
Extinct: An animal and/or plant that has disappeared forever. This can occur due to natural factors and/or by human activities.
Greta Thunberg: Greta is a Swedish activist for climate change. She begun the School Strikes for Climate Change and is also the founder of the movement, "Fridays for Future."
Pollution: When the environment is not clean. There are lots of kinds of pollution: air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, even noise and light pollution. Pollution can come from nature or be man-made.
Overpopulation: When too many people live in a certain place.
Sustainable Solutions: Activities and/or methods that are eco friendly to the environment.
Some specific terms that fall under sustainable solutions are:
Eco Friendly: Friendly or non harmful to the environment.
Compost: A type of material that is made from rotting plants, and can improve the soil and help plants grow. Examples of compost include dead leaves and grass as well as leftover food scraps.
Recyclable: Something that can be reused to make new products. Plastic, paper, glass, steel, and aluminum cans, and used oil are examples of recyclable materials.
Renewable Energy: Energy that is made from resources that nature will replace/replenish over time (ex. wind, sun). Renewable Energy is also known as "clean/green energy", as they don't pollute our environment.
You can find some more key environmental terms and definitions here.
Practice Environmental Sustainability in your Daily Life: By engaging in environmental support with your kids, they will have a greater understanding of environmental issues and solutions. Volunteer in your local community (ex.trash pickups), or try weekly vegetarian and/or vegan meals. Teach your children to properly recycle and compost and install these bins in your house. Use reusable water bottles and/or utensils whenever possible (in particular, you can use bamboo utensils in place of plastic when eating out).
Talk, Read, and Research about Environmental Pollution and Sustainability: If you don't know all the answers, it's ok! You can search your questions together online. Try to find environmental books that have positive messages and that are encouraging (here are 10 inspiring children's books about the environment).
Be Patient: Kids need time to process, and these messages can take time to sink in. Be patient and allow your child's understanding of the environment to develop over time.
Our environment should be sacred to us; since it is in trouble, we need to involve our children in discussion and action.