by Alyx Grayson

Created on: March 17, 2009   Last Updated: March 18, 2009

Originally dedicated on March 21, 1970 in the city of San Francisco, Earth Day is a day that focuses on the living planet. Added to the national calendar throughout the 70s, the conservation movement brought the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts to pass. Earth Day returned to the public consciousness during the 1990s. Dennis Hayes organized an Earth Day event that spanned the globe rather than just the continental U.S. and an estimated 200 million people attended Earth Day events.

Modern calendars celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd, rather than the Spring Equinox of March 21st. Earth Day events take place for the month long period leading up to Earth Day with larger scale events actually taking place on April 22nd itself. In 2009, Disney is releasing the film Earth on Earth Day to celebrate the natural wonder and beauty of the planet.

Teaching Earth Day to Children

Teaching young children about Earth Day means focusing on the things they can do to save the planet, conserve the planet and protect the planet. Lessons in recycling and why it's important to recycle natural materials is as important as planting and tending to gardens, cleaning up and protecting polluted and littered areas.

Many groups get together and host area clean ups of local strips of highway, parks, walking trails and much more. Learning about Earth Day requires understanding how precious the Earth is and what each individual can do to protect and preserve it. An Earth Day pledge is a great teaching tool for Earth Day.

Parents and teachers who want to create an Earth Day pledge should consider something similar to the following:

I, {insert name}, do hereby pledge to:

*Always throw my trash in the proper cans and to not litter.

*Pick up trash when I see it and dispose of it properly.

*Encourage others to do the same.

*To leave the Earth better than I found it.

*To think green and conserve natural resources by turning off the lights when I don't need them.

Earth Day activities and lessons should be held outside if possible. Focus on vanishing species of plants, animals and ways of life. Show appreciation for projects that require the protection and conservation of wildlife locally, nationally and internationally. As the phrase goes: think globally and act locally.

Consider every Earth Day a renewal of previous pledges and a day to celebrate the planet, because without the Earth, there would be no life. Celebrate Earth Day this year and every year.

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