Eco-responsibility: how to raise awareness in your child?

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9 good ecological practices to implement with your children

In order to create eco-friendly reflexes, it is often recommended to raise children's awareness about ecology from an early age. This teaching is most often done through fun activities that we'll enjoy sharing as a family. Discover below several ideas and tips to guide the first steps towards awakening to nature preservation!

Going to school by bike (or on foot)

If the distance between school and home allows it, why not opt for walking or cycling to get there? Every morning and evening, the child actively participates in environmental protection! The same goes for short trips that can be made this way (buying bread, going to the pharmacy, etc.). Setting a good example is absolutely necessary to succeed in awakening ecological awareness in children. Moreover, getting some fresh air together will only make the journey more enjoyable!

Observing nature

To encourage your child to preserve the environment, it is recommended to make them aware of what they are protecting. Whether it's trees, plants, flowers, animals, insects, or lakes, seas, and oceans: everything can be observed! There are also places dedicated to this type of learning such as certain museums, zoos, or aquariums for example. Understanding the life around them will make them even more eager to take care of it.

Creating a small garden for children

What could be more playful and fun than gardening? Using dedicated containers or a small reserved space in the garden, children can create their flower bed or vegetable garden. Choosing plants, finding a place for them, taking care of them, and watching them flourish: these are all small steps that children will love! It's also a good opportunity to enjoy an outdoor activity in any season.

Fillettes souriantes dans un champs
Lit mezzanine avec bureau et armoire 90x190 MANLY

Furnish your room ecologically

Each daily step is an opportunity to awaken the child's ecological awareness. This is also true when it comes to purchasing furniture for their room. Thus, when they transition to a bigger bed, we can suggest opting for an ecological children's bed. Made up of wooden children's furniture and an ecological children's mattress, this bed can come from eco-managed forests, be manufactured in France, or even both!

The modular children's bed or convertible children's bed are also excellent solutions for environmentally conscious parents. They evolve as the child grows. This way, a single piece of furniture is used for several years for greater durability and responsible consumption.

Making daily gestures more eco-friendly

During the learning of certain daily gestures, eco-responsibility can also be addressed:

  • Don't let water run while brushing teeth
  • Turn off the TV when not watching
  • Sort waste
  • Choose seasonal fruits and vegetables
  • Take seconds rather than throwing away food
  • Draw on both sides of paper
  • Favor reusable objects
  • Make compost available 

Children's daily lives are filled with all kinds of opportunities to awaken their ecological awareness. Daily gestures will simply be adapted according to the child's age.

For example, waste sorting can be implemented from the age of 7. Several sorting compartments can be set up with colors (preferably the same as the garbage bins). Images of what should be sorted and how can be added. This can present certain risks. It is therefore recommended to choose this activity with children who are old enough and to equip yourself accordingly. A first experience with regular practitioners may be preferable for greater safety.

Famille qui ramasse des déchets sur la plage

Consuming educational content on the subject

While good habits are part of daily life, there's nothing preventing diversifying learning. There are numerous books, as well as interactive online content about ecology that are designed for children. This can be an excellent way to vary learning methods and address a wide range of topics.

Participating in green walks

A green walk is a walk in the city or nature while picking up litter. It combines the useful with the pleasant and can be a great opportunity to raise awareness among children while having a good time. You can participate in an organized way by joining an association for example. You can also take the initiative yourself on the beach or in the forest.

However, picking up litter can present certain risks. It is therefore recommended to choose this activity with children who are old enough and to equip yourself accordingly. A first experience with regular practitioners may be preferable for greater safety.

Build an insect hotel

The theme of biodiversity can also be addressed as part of this learning. Creating an insect hotel will be a fantastic introduction. Children will also love discovering insects settling in and carrying out their daily activities within their hotel.

There are many online tutorials for creating an insect hotel. It's also a great opportunity to offer children a hands-on activity. Similarly, you can also opt for making a bird house.

Discover the art of upcycling!

Packaging boxes, laundry containers, water or milk bottles, old clothing, egg cartons, cork stoppers - upcycling gives a second life to many types of waste! Several manual activities are indeed opportunities to repurpose certain household waste. Once again, the web is full of very simple ideas and online tutorials. This way, you can easily keep busy on rainy days, and at a lower cost!