8 Green Tasks Your Toddler Can Do

Getting kids on the road to a low-waste lifestyle can begin at birth since little ones observe and mimic what we do. Here are eight simple ways to get them involved early on.

• Recycle household items. Easy peasy. Hand your toddler a washed-out yogurt container, and see if he can drop it into the blue bin. Let him pick up yesterday’s newspaper and toss it into the green bin. Kids learn color differentiation as well as what items are recyclable. Learn more tips on making recycling fun for kids.
• Hand you wet clothes from the laundry basket as you hang them on the clothesline. There are both eco and cost benefits to air drying your laundry.
• Throw dryer balls into your dryer. (aff link) Wool dryer balls are a chemical-free, cost-efficient alternative to dryer sheets and fabric softeners (they’re especially great for drying cloth diapers). They also reduce static and increase fluffiness. You can even learn to make your own dryer balls.
• Dig in the garden. You can either allot your toddler a small area to do what she wants or have her work alongside you turning over the earth. Since dirt and water is a natural playscape for toddlers, encourage their curiosity and desire for exploration instead of worrying about the mess.
• Draw on scrap paper. There’s no reason to shell out dollars for brand new sketchbooks. As you well know, toddlers are happy to scribble on anything. Demonstrate early lessons about paper waste by giving them the backside of computer paper or giftwrap, envelopes from junk mail, store receipts… they’ll love the variety of paper shapes and sizes.
• Dry dishes. Whether you’ve used the no-heat dishwasher cycle or washed by hand, your toddler can use a towel to wipe down unbreakable items such as pots and pans, plastic storage containers or spoons.
• Toss food scraps into the compost. We keep an old plastic container on the kitchen counter, and take it out to the compost bin when it’s full. So while you’re chopping fruits and veggies, leave the scraps for your toddler to put into your countertop container. It’s an easy early education on what types of items can be composted, and your child may delight in the idea of giving food to the bugs who will then “magically” turn it into garden dirt.
• Clean the house. If you use natural cleaners such as baking soda and vinegar, your toddler can help clean without worry of harmful ingestion. Wet a cloth rag with water and a bit of white vinegar, and let him go to town wiping tiled floors, refrigerator shelves or even the bathtub while he’s in it. Give her a scoop of baking soda to pour over the carpet before you vacuum it. Hand him a spray bottle of highly diluted vinegar to spray and wipe down outdoor play structures and toys. Offer your child a natural broom and you’ll soon find her sweeping the patio, porch or driveway. (The broom may serve double duty for flying once she enters the Harry Potter years.)

This post is shared at Healthy, Happy, Green and Natural Blog Hop and Natural Living Monday.