Earth Day Kids Poems

I’m slowly coming back to work after a long and awesome spring break. We didn’t go anywhere, but I got caught up on so many things! It’s so hard to get back into the swing of things, though.

Besides spring break and Easter, the other great thing about April is Earth Day. We have a ton of great material for your classroom for this very special day! Earth Day was started in 1970 by Wisconsin U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, inspired mostly by his first hand experience with the environmental devastation of a 1969 oil spill in California. The intention of the the holiday was to first be celebrated mostly by schools of all grade levels, including colleges and universities. But I honestly don’t remember hearing about Earth Day until the late 1980’s, which is such a shame. And I’m not surprised that someone from Wisconsin started Earth Day, because that state is really one of my most favorite places to visit. They like to call us in Illinois ‘flat-landers’, and they are right! Illinois is flat as can be and the rolling hills of Wisconsin are just plain beautiful!

The mission of Earth Day is to teach our children about how humans affect the environment in detrimental ways. Topics to discuss with your students could include how power generation causes pollution, environmental disasters, the use of pesticides and harmful chemicals, animal habitat loss of wilderness, or the importance of recycling, reducing consumption and using renewable resources. It is celebrated every year on April 22, and you can always get a ton more information at the official Earth Day Network website, or check out our Earth Day lesson plan with free worksheets.