INNOVATIVE TEACHING NEWSLETTER--EARTH DAY RESOURCES 2006
http://surfaquarium.com/NEWSLETTER/earthday06.htm
A long list of resources from Walter McKenzie.

EarthDay.gov

Classroom Earth
http://www.classroomearth.org
To prepare for Earth Day 2005 and to increase the amount of environmental education taught in schools, the National Environmental Education & Training Foundation, in cooperation with dozens of outstanding environmental education organizations and agencies, is coordinating National Environmental Education Week. National EE Week will take place April 10 – 16, 2005.

The Electronic Naturalist
http://www.enaturalist.org
An online education program providing a weekly environmental education unit. Each unit has artwork, text, activities, additional web sites, plus online access to a professional naturalist. Two reading levels are available for grades K-3 (Quick Read) and 4-8 (Full Read).

Earth Day Network (EDN)
http://www.earthday.org
Through Earth Day Network, activists connect, interact, and impact their communities, and create positive change in local, national, and global policies. EDN's international network reaches over 12,000 organizations in 174 countries, while the domestic program keeps over 3,000 groups and over 100,000 educators coordinating millions of community development and environmental protection activities throughout the year.

EARTH DAY GROCERIES PROJECT
http://www.earthdaybags.org/

CELEBRATING EARTH DAY WITH STUDENTS:
http://www.woodrow.org/teachers/bi/1991/earthday.html
What are some unique activities you can introduce at your
school to effectively and meaningfully celebrate Earth
Day? How about propagating house plants to sell at a fund-
raiser? Or hold and plan an ecofair in your school cafe-
teria? Find these and several other creative suggestions
for school Earth Day activities.

INVESTIGATING RECYCLING:
http://www.iit.edu/~smile/bi9611.html
Through a series of hands-on activities, elementary stu-
dents will investigate how much garbage we create through
packaging, and explore the various ways we can recycle. Ex-
periments introduce how animals are affected by pollution
and trash, with an eye to more responsible waste management
and recycling efforts.

THE LORAX'S SAVE THE TREES GAME:
http://www.seussville.com/games/lorax/
Students will have to catch the Truffula seeds to help
the Lorax replant the forest. Shockwave is required for
this online game, based on Dr. Seuss's "The Lorax".

EARTH DAY ACTIVITIES:
http://www.childfun.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=18
Try making some natural dyes, straight from nature, to give
early elementary students an appreciation of natural products.
Paint with mud, or collect and display twigs, grasses, or
stones that you find on a walk around your school. Find re-
cycling songs, Earth crafts, tree talk, and science experi-
ments here for an Earth Day theme.

TREES ARE TERRIFIC:
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/trees1/index.html
Early elementary students will learn all about the parts,
functions, and requirements of trees in this online, in-
teractive learning adventure. A Teacher's Guide is also
included, along with further activities to extend the
learning opportunity and to apply the new knowledge to
Arbor Day or Earth Day practices.

RESOURCES FROM EDUCATION WORLD
http://www.educationworld.com/holidays/archives/earthday.shtml
This article from Education World includes a list of links to Earth Day sites and activities.

REDUCING COMMUNITY WASTE -- AN ONLINE EXHIBIT:
http://www.learner.org/exhibits/garbage/intro.html
Each year more and more waste is generated by an ever-grow-
ing American population. How are our landfills and communi-
ties handling all this garbage? Take an online interactive
tour through the Annenberg exhibit "Garbage" and learn how
we handle waste, what the issues are, and what communities
are doing to improve their environmental records.

TEACHERS--JOIN THE EARTH DAY TEACHER'S NETWORK
http://www.earthday.net/involved/teachers/join-Network.aspx
Join the Teacher's Network and get free access to lesson plans, an Environmental Jeopardy game, and more!

A WEEK OF EARTH DAY ACTIVITIES:
http://www.greenteacher.com//articles/earthweek.html
On Monday, try experimenting with and discussing water
issues, such as weather and the role of water, hydro-
electric power, or fish and environmental issues. On
Tuesday you'll be investigating the element of fire,
including mythology, music, cooking, etc. Learning
themes cover each of the elements, with the Earth on
Wednesday and Air on Thursday, all with creative sug-
gestions for learning across the curriculum.

MAKE A TERRARIUM:
http://www.nsc.org/ehc/kids/terrariu.htm
You can use virtually any clear container to create a
living terrarium, of any size. Before selecting plants
for your terrarium, choose the location for which it
will find a home, then plant accordingly. Find direct-
ions here to complete your project.

GREENHOUSE EFFECT IN A JAR:
http://sln.fi.edu/tfi/activity/earth/earth-5.html
There is still much talk about the greenhouse effect,
and you can help your students understand its conse-
quences with this hands-on experiment. Using a ther-
mos, a jar, thermometers, a time piece, and sunshine,
students will create their own greenhouse effects and
then relate the results to the larger environment.

PLANET PALS TEACHERS' CHALLENGE:
http://www.planetpals.com/teacherschallenge.html
In this Earth Day-friendly site, teachers are encour-
aged to start a recycling program with their students,
for either their own class or the school as a whole.
While quite simple to institute, this kind of recy-
cling program can create responsible, active students,
who will be quite proud of their results and accomplish-
ments. Several extension ideas make the project exciting,
and a Teacher Packet with stickers, certificates, and
classroom posters is included.