From bright flowers to towering trees and the slow progress of clouds across the sky, young children are fascinated by the world around them. It’s never too early to take advantage of this natural curiosity, both to lay the foundations for a lifetime of enjoying nature and to get children thinking about taking care of our planet. After all, we're talking about their home!

Appreciate the great outdoors

Arguably the best way to nurture an early interest in nature is simple: head outside. Walking around your garden or a nearby park, start by pointing out some of the plants, trees, and birds that you see and encourage your children to ask questions about them. You might also want to try planting some seeds and watching them grow, filling a bird feeder, or constructing your very own ‘bug hotel’.

Get together with friends and neighbours

Why not make spending time outdoors and taking care of the environment something you share with friends? Join others for a local litter pick or perhaps for those lucky enough to live near the coast, a beach clean-up. It’s a perfect time to start or add to conversations about litter, pollution, endangered species, and many other concerns.

Pack a delicious lunch

When you are out and about with children, it’s never long before you need to stop for a snack! Helping your family pack their food in a reusable lunch box and refill their water bottles can go a long way towards reducing your household’s reliance on single-use plastic. Later, everyone can help make sure that as much as possible of what is left over goes into the recycling bin.

Do a little bedtime reading

A great way of helping children learn about the environment without them even realising is to read books on the subject together. You might choose a classic like The Lorax by Dr. Seuss, with its clever use of humour and rhyme, or a more modern title like A Planet Full of Plastic: and how you can help by Neal Layton, which focuses on how we can all make a difference when it comes to plastic waste.

At Virtue Gaming, our purpose is to use mobile gaming as a tool for helping raise awareness of global issues. To learn more, check out some of our other blog posts.

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