Make National Play Doh Day Natural Play Dough Day!

Why not try making natural Play Clay at home and bring home a healthy message.

National Play-Doh Day celebrates a great childhood play toy on September 16.

Invented in the mid 1950s, it has entertained millions of children, and allowed them to express their creativity, both at home and in the classroom.

The original invention was simple. A school teacher wanted a safe modeling clay for her pre-schoolers. She asked her brother-in-law Joseph McVicker, who worked at a chemical company, to come up with something. The result was simple....flour, water and food coloring.

You can do the same at home -- and it is healthier!  

Check out the variety of simple play clay recipes (there are cook and non cook, flour and corn starch recipes, and more) available on Planetpals.com with some ideas and patterns to help you teach healthy living, too. 

Lots of great recipes!

Teach The 4”R’s” and Paint Your School Bright GREEN

There are so many great ways to have a greener school yearl. This is Planetpals top ten list of SIMPLE ideas you can implement in your school, in no time, and with no cost!  All the while, encouraging GREEN habits, pro-active solutions and teaching the 4 “r’s”. 

1. Reusable Containers

Encourage everyone to use reusable containers to hold their snacks, drinks and lunches - so that no plastic or paper has to be thrown away. This is a great way to REDUCE!

2. Scrap Paper Box

Keep a scrap paper box in a convenient location. Encourage everyone to use both sides of the paper. This is a great way to Renew!

3. Ecology Craft Box

So many of the items normally bound for the garbage actually make wonderful craft materials.  Boxes, tissue paper, string, and plastic bottles are some of the items kids can use to make great projects. This is a great way to recycle!

4. School supply SWAP

Organize a school supply swap or have a swap box in the classroom for unused school supplies and books. This is a great way to REDUCE!

5. Book Swap:

Encourage additional reading! Organize a one-day book swap or have a “free book” bookcase in the classroom.This is a great way to REUSE!

 6. Organize a Planetpals “Walking School Bus” or Car Pool:

If kids live close to school, we love this idea.  Kids can learn to save energy and gas by using alternative means of transportation such as bicycle, walk or ride sharing. This is a great way to REDUCE! Learn more

7. Get Your Whole School to Recycle. Start a Planetpals ECO PATROL

Planetpals ECO PATROL is a great way to encourage kids In school. This is a great project for your class. if your school does not already have a recycling program in place.  If your school already recycles, see if your class can improve the current system. This is a great way to RECYCLE!

8.  Recycle Fundraisers: 

Good for the school good for the environment.  Recycle phones and ink cartridges.  Earn points and money for your classroom.  Encourage companies to sponsor your by donating their points. A recycle fundraiser gets everyone involved.  This is a great way to RECYCLE! 

9. School Beautification:

Teach kids to love their surroundings and earn a green thumb.  Start seedlings and later plant flowers around the schoolyard. Encourage them to maintain the garden. This is a great way to RENEW!

10. ORGANIZE a “PLANETPALS Day”.

Once a month or once a week.  Many schools have a” Planetpals DAY”. Do Planetpals recycle kits and activities to learn about earth and earth issues and encourage recycling. Why not have a recycle craft on that day! This is a great way to learn  ALL the 4 “r’s”!

Learn more about being green at Planetpals.com.  Hundreds of pages of content, info, ideas, crafts and downloads. Teachers Parents Pages, more.

Peace Crafts And Ideas for Peace Day

September 22 is International Peace Day and what better way to celebrate than participating in some peaceful activities and peace crafts.  

Peace Day Crafts Even You Can Do!

Take a look at these unique recycle craft ideas we have for you for Peace Day. Make one for yourself and spread the peace to a friend (or two)!

For additional peace crafts follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and go to the peace crafts section of Planetpals Website. We add them all the time.

Make a colorful Paper Plate Peace Symbol Recycle Craft 

From Ikidsclub Peace Website Make an origami Peace Crane and participate in the 1,000 cranes for peace project !

From Ikidsclub Peace Website Make a Peace Lantern.  Get the Directions here 

peace lantern

Cut out a Peace Sign and wrap it in wrappers, magazine pages etc. This one is wrapped in can strips-but we don't recommend that for children!

Candy Wrapper Peace Symbol

Soda Can Pop Tops Peace Sign is another great recycle crafts from greenupgrader

Can Top Peace Symbol

 From Craft Knife a simple idea for melted crayons Peace Sign. 

Melted Crayone Peace Sign

 A Peace Symbol CD Recycle Craft from Planetpals

Recycle CD Peace Sign 

Have a Peace Party! Make  Peace Symbol Cake or Cupcake:

Peace Cake and Cupcake

Looking for Classroom ideas, history and lesson plans to celebrate Peace Day? IKC has is all!  

Read these enlightening and fun ideas for peace in this International Peace DAY article, too.  Great for the classroom!

Loads More Peace Ideas and Crafts on Our Pinterest Peace Page

© jag Planetpals.com all rights reserved! 

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Shop The Town Swap And Save The Landfill

Divert thousands of tons of trash from a landfill while shopping green.

All over the country towns are implementing "Swap Shops" at town transfer stations or recycle centers.  

They make so much sense, that I haven't figured out why every town in the US does not have a swap shop! It's a no brainer, because it not only diverts trash tonnage from landfills, but it adds up to savings on town disposal costs.  For instance, the town of Dennis, MA diverts 56% of it's residential solid waste from the landfill due to their Swap shop "Take it or Leave it". 

What is a swap shop?  

A town swap can be a recycle center for just about everything. It's a put and take: a place to bring items and a place to shop for them for free.  

Each town runs theirs differently, some towns have only single book swaps or computer swaps.   But many towns have swaps for every recyclable category, often housed in multiple buildings or recycled trailors. Many are well organized and categorized just like stores and libraries.  Some buildings even have background music!  Many swap shops are maintained by city employees and others manned by volunteers.  

What amazes me, is how much stuff actually gets reclaimed, reused, repurposed and saved from landfills.   It seems that people find use for just about anything.  Residents can not only reclaim standard items such as clothing, kitchenware, furniture, sports and gardening equipment, but also reuse building materials. No matter how the shops are configured, they have one thing thing in common, and that is that they give new life to tons of old objects and recycle it all.  Items go as quickly as they come in!

Why doesn't every town have one?  

Every town has a small space that can be allocated for this project, but many towns do not consider them important enough.  My town had a book swap and a computer electronics area for several years, but recently closed them down, mainly because they didn't want to be bothered. It's a shame, because residents are often too overwhelmed, incapable or ill informed to find someone to take their stuff away and more often end up just tossing it into the trash. Hence, it goes to a landfill and much of it will never biodegrade.

So, whether the swap shops are affectionately named "Town Mall", "Put n Take", "Last Chance" or "Treasure Chest",  it's a concept that not only saves the residents and the town, but saves the planet!

If there is no swap shop in your town, why not take action and talk to your DPW or recycle committee.  It's good for the planet and greener in many ways.

Learn more about Swaps on Planetpals.com

How to Recycle it, Sell it , Swap it or Give it Away - Planetpals

Neighborhood, Community Swap Tips and Directions ... - Planetpals

Planetpals Earthday Swap Activity Ideas for The Classroom or ...

Some Yummy Recycle Ideas For Pizza Boxes

Creative Ways To Reuse Pizza Boxes In The Classroom. 

From Planetpals.com , Have students create their own Pizza Box folder for each semester or project to hold their papers and drawings. This one is by Andrew-9 years old-Great Great job!

 

From Teach Preschool.org,  An artwork Drying Rack.  This stacks up to one creative idea for any classroom or art space!

From Nashville Public Library, a Pizza box theatre.  why not stage a play based on a recent book the class has read? 

From Creative Jewish Mom  comes this Pizza box art.  Just imagine the ways you can decorate and recraft any size pizza box.

From Just Crafty Enough, a Pizza Box Diorama.  Turn it into a lesson plan on dinosaurs, animals, oceans, forests or any other topic.

The perfect place for artwork at school or home! A Pizza box portfolio by Crayola 

For more creative ideas for the classroom or homeschool see Planetpals Crafts Pages 

For more recycle ideas for BOXES see our Pinterest Page

Happy Anniversary National Parks - You're A Breath of Fresh Air!

No matter where you live you can always appreciate your National Parks and Natural Lands. They are a breath of fresh air!

We wouldn't have the National Parks if it were not for our forefathers who thought ahead to protect our precious and sacred lands. On August 25, 1916, US President Woodrow Wilson signed the act creating the National Park Service, a new federal bureau in the Department of the Interior responsible for protecting the 35 national parks and monuments then managed by the department and those yet to be established.

Learn how you can help care for our national parks, forests and natural lands.  They are our national treasures.  We have lots of fun history, ideas and tips to help you keep then clean and green.

There are 58 national parks in the National Park Service.  Here’s a full alphabetical list by Wikipedia:

National Parks by State

Alaska

1. Denali National Park and Preserve
2. Gates of the Arctic National Park
3. Glacier Bay National Park
4. Katmai National Park and Preserve
5. Kenai Fjords National Park
6. Kobuk Valley National Park
7. Lake Clark National Park

American Samoa

1. National Park of American Samoa

Arizona

1. Grand Canyon National Park
2. Petrified Forest National Park
3. Saguaro National Park

Arkansas

1. Hot Springs National Park

California

1. Channel Islands National Park
2. Death Valley National Park
3. Joshua Tree National Park
4. Kings Canyon National Park
5. Lassen Volcanic National Park
6. Redwood National Park
7. Sequoia National Park
8. Yosemite National Park

Colorado

1. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
2. Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
3. Mesa Verde National Park
4. Rocky Mountain National Park

Florida

1. Biscayne National Park
2. Dry Tortugas National Park
3. Everglades National Park

Hawaii

1. Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
2. Haleakalā National Park

Kentucky

1. Mammoth Cave National Park

Maine

1. Acadia National Park

Michigan

1. Isle Royale National Park

Minnesota

1. Voyageurs National Park

Montana

1. Glacier National Park

Nevada

1. Great Basin National Park

New Mexico

1. Carlsbad Caverns National Park

North Carolina

1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park

North Dakota

1. Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Ohio

1. Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Oregon

1. Crater Lake National Park

South Carolina

1. Congaree National Park

South Dakota

1. Badlands National Park
2. Wind Cave National Park

Tennessee

1. Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Texas

1. Big Bend National Park
2. Guadalupe Mountains National Park

United States Virgin Islands

1. Virgin Islands National Park

Utah

1. Arches National Park
2. Bryce Canyon National Park
3. Canyonlands National Park
4. Capitol Reef National Park
5. Zion National Park

Virginia

1. Shenandoah National Park

Washington

1. Mount Rainier National Park
2. North Cascades National Park
3. Olympic National Park

Wyoming

1. Grand Teton National Park
2. Yellowstone National Park

Let's Clear The Air About World Ozone Day

Sept 16 is International World Ozone Day Each Year

The layer of the Earth's atmosphere that surrounds us is called the troposphere. The stratosphere, the next higher layer, extends about 10–50 kilometers above the Earth's surface. Stratospheric ozone is a naturally occurring gas that filters the sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

Today, there is widespread concern that the ozone layer is deteriorating due to the release of pollution. Such deterioration allows large amounts of ultraviolet B rays to reach Earth, which can cause health problems in humans and harm animals as well.

What is the Hole Ozone story?

Learn about the Ozone Layer  and why we need to clear the air with Planetpals Dusty on Planetpals.com.