“Clean up, clean up! Everybody. Everywhere!” You may have heard that song since you were a little kid. Well, let it remind you that it’s Earth Day on April 22, 2025! And every day! This year, the theme is “Our Power, Our Planet”, so please get your family, your friends, and your neighbors to think of other, renewable ways to get energy. Let’s use our planet’s natural resources to create energy so you can keep using your electronics, like TVs, cell phones, computers, and even your cars.
Vist the Earth Day website to see what you can do!
Be like Greta Thunberg and take steps to protect your planet from the dangers of rising temperatures, like the melting icebergs and more natural disasters.
Think about what is already here on Earth that we have a lot. There’s water (rivers, creeks, the ocean), wind, sun, air, dirt, plants, and animals. There are a lot of these natural resources, and they can be used as energy sources!
Join us on April 19 at 10:30 for the STREAM Storytime at Crestwood. We will have three activities to explore Wind, Water, and Solar (sun power). Families will make their own pinwheel and water wheel, and you can learn how to melt foods using a solar oven.
There are plenty of other projects that you and your family can do to learn about the value of using earth’s resources for energy. Little Bins For Little Hands has a page with projects and information here. There are other resources to help you learn about conserving and using energy:
- 10 Easy Ways for Kids to Conserve Energy at Home and School
- Renewable Energy Activities for Kids
- Earth Day Guide to Renewable Energy
The YPL has Earth Day Celebrations for you (and your adults). Don’t forget you can make old items like new at the Riverfront Mending Club on Saturdays, and The Repair Cafe at Crestwood on Saturday, May 17th.
Get ideas for saving our planet from these books available through your local library:
- I can save the earth: a kids' handbook for keeping earth healthy and green
- Earth Day Every Day
- Reuse This Book!
Don’t wait, just get out there and do it. Try these ideas with your family, your friends, and your neighbors:
- Turn off the lights when you leave a room.
- Eat more vegetables and throw away less food.
- Save water and use less. Try out a rain barrel to catch the rain to use in your garden.
- Reduce, reuse, recycle, and repair rather than buying more and more.
- Pick up garbage when you go on walks. Stay safe and take a grabber tool or use gloves.
- Check out more ideas from National Geographic Kids.
Remember, this earth is the only home we have. Think about what its future looks like and take actions to help save it!
Nancy Wissman is a part-time Children’s Librarian at Crestwood Library. She is especially excited about bringing science to Crestwood with the Saturday STREAM storytime, which combines her love of story reading and storytelling with her new passion for science. Nancy has been a librarian for over 30 years, working in several libraries in different library departments, but most enjoys connecting children with literacy.