Earth Day Activities for Elementary and Middle School Students

On Earth Day — which is celebrated every year on April 22nd — we honor our home planet, and reflect on how we can protect the Earth. This day can be a timely opportunity to introduce environmental science to students and discuss how they can be good stewards of the Earth through sustainable practices, such as recycling. From Earth Day science experiments to creative writing prompts, here are a few different activities you could add to your lesson plans to inspire your students.

10 Earth Day Activities for Elementary Students and Middle School Students

Honor our beautiful planet in your classroom with these fun Earth Day activities for students in elementary and middle school.

Introduce students to environmental science.

As an educator, you have the opportunity to spark a passion in students about the environment, and inspire them to do their part to take care of the Earth — no matter what subject you teach. Get your students excited about Earth Day with these interactive activities and mini-units that’ll introduce them to broader concepts about the environment.

Earth Day Mini-Unit for Pre-K and Kindergarten by Intentional Momma
Grades: PreK-Kindergarten | Math

This Earth Day mini-unit is great for morning work or classroom centers during the month of April.

Earth Day Mini Unit: Activities and Printables by Curriculum Castle
Grades: Kindergarten-2nd | Environmental Science

Use these fun activities to engage your students as you explore environmental awareness.

Engage students in science activities and experiments about pollution.

Exploring and raising awareness around the concept of pollution is an essential part of any Earth Day lesson. With these Earth Day science experiments and activities, motivate your students to keep our planet clean and green.

Lava Lamp | An Oil And Water Experiment by Kimberly Scott Science | Environmental Science | Environmental Science
Grades: 4th-7th 

This is a fun Earth Day science experiment, designed to help students discover that oil and water are immiscible. It’s a great introductory activity to talk about oil spills and pollution.

Earth Day Activity | Pollution Control Committee by HappyEdugator
Grades: 4th-7th  | Environmental Science

In this Earth Day cooperative learning activity, students take on the role of being on a committee to reduce environmental pollution. They’ll meet in groups to analyze several different scenarios and to determine which polluter is the most destructive to the environment. Then, they’ll compare their results with other groups in the class.

Learn about recycling.

Recycling is a small step that kids can take to make an impact on the environment. Through these recycling crafts, teach kids about the importance of recycling and reusing materials

Earth Day Recycling Craft | Earth Day Bulletin Board with Writing by The Pawsitive Teacher
Grades: Kindergarten-3rd | English Language Arts

Students will organize things that both help and harm the Earth in this craftivity.

Earth Day Recycling Logic Puzzles by The Science Vault
Grades: 6th-8th | Math

These brain teasers ask students to determine the number of recycled items to solve a “secret message” about the environment.

Begin a discussion around climate change.

Introduce students to the aspects of climate change such as what it is, the effects, and actions they can take.

Climate Change Activity Gallery walk Earth Day by Education with DocRunning
Grades: 5th-9th | Environmental Science

This ready-to-use gallery walk is ideal for Earth Day or as an introduction to a climate change unit.

Build connections to the topics through some fun.

Games, creative writing, and art projects are a fun way to connect students to topics around the environment and help them imagine a better world to live in.

Earth Day Craft: Design an Earthly Heart Game, Art Sub Plan & Writing Prompts by Glitter Meets Glue | English Language Arts

Grades: 1st-5th

Need a creative bulletin board for Earth Day? Have students color in Earth-shaped hearts and complete one of the two included writing prompts.

Earth Day Skip Counting Puzzles for Primary Students by Teach Me T
Grades: PreK-1st | Math

These Earth-Day theme picture puzzles are a fun way for primary students to actively practice counting by 2’s, 5’s and 10’s and learn how they make our planet a healthier place to live.

Creative Writing: Change the Narrator! Earth Day Themed by Real Native Learning
Grades: 3rd-5th | English Language Arts (Creative Writing)

Celebrate Earth Day with these fun passages that touch on protecting the environment, ecosystems, recycling, raising awareness, and more!

Discover more Earth Day classroom activities and lesson plans on TpT.