Earth Day 2025 Teaching Resources
Teach students about Earth Day in 2025 with printables, worksheets, activities, crafts, and more about being kind to our earth and living a more sustainable life.
This collection of teacher-created resources for ELA, math and science teachers touches on a variety of eco-friendly themes, including sustainability, environmental impact, and recycling. Most resources are curriculum-aligned and editable so you can differentiate work for individual students, and each has undergone rigorous review by an expert teacher on the Teach Starter team.
Teaching Earth Day for the first time this year, or need a quick guide to the 2025 holiday? Read on for tips from our teacher team!
When Is Earth Day 2025?
Earth Day is held on the same day each year, which means this year the holiday will be on April 22, 2025. This is a Tuesday, so schools should be in session!
What Is the Theme of Earth Day 2025?
Following the Earth Day theme — chosen annually by EarthDay.org — can help you focus your lesson planning to save time and have the greatest impact on your students.
The 2025 theme is Our Power, Our Planet, opening the door to talk about renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, and tidal, to generate clean electricity for everyone.
How Do You Explain Earth Day to a Child?
Depending on the grade level you are teaching this school year, explaining the state of our planet can be a challenge. So, how do you touch on the importance of being green and sustainability in kid-friendly ways?
First, you may want to consider why it's so important that our students learn about Earth Day in the first place. Earth Day is an important opportunity for children to learn about the environment, the importance of conservation and sustainability, and to understand their role as active citizens.
Among the issues kids are learning when you teach about Earth Day in the classroom:
- Environmental education: Learning about Earth Day helps students understand the importance of protecting the environment and preserving natural resources for future generations.
- Climate change: Understanding the impacts of climate change and how to reduce carbon footprint can be started in elementary school and have a real impact as kids grow up
- Active citizenship: Children learning about Earth Day are learning about how they can make a difference in their own community, such as recycling, conserving energy, and protecting endangered species.
- Interdependence: Learning about Earth Day also helps children understand how everything in the world is interconnected, and how our actions can have a direct impact on the planet.
- Encouraging curiosity and creativity: Earth Day promotes curiosity and creativity in children, leading them to want to explore and learn more about the world around them.
What Can Students Do on Earth Day?
This collection is full of activities you can use with your students this Earth Day, and here are some things elementary schools can do to mark this important annual event:
- Get Planting at School — If you don't already have one, Earth Day is the perfect time to create a school garden and teach students about the benefits of planting fresh plants, flowers and trees.
- Clean-Up Litter Around the Community — Organize a clean-up event to pick up litter in the school's community.
- Amp Up Recycling Efforts — Encourage your students to do more to keep trash (especially plastic!) out of landfills by setting up recycling stations around the school or in your classroom.
- Conserve Energy — Educate your students about energy conservation and encourage them to turn off lights and unplug electronics when they're not in use.
- Enjoy Nature — Organize a nature walk around the school or in a nearby park. Your class can learn about different types of plants and animals while they enjoy fresh air.
- Bring in a Guest — Invite an expert to speak to the class about environmental issues and what kids can do to help.
- Get Creative With Reuse — Your class can make artwork using recycled materials and learn about how these items can be transformed into something new and beautiful.
- Experiment — Conduct a science experiment in your science classes related to an environmental issue, and learn about how we can make a difference.
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What are Natural Resources - Instructional Slide Deck
Explore natural resources, where they come from, and how we use them with an instructional slide deck.
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Earth Day - Acrostic Poem Template Pack
An acrostic poem template pack to use in the classroom to celebrate Earth Day and National Poetry Month.
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - Brainstorming Sheets
Brainstorm All the Ways to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle with a pack of printable brainstorming worksheets.
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Earth Day Word Search - Printable
Identify environmental terms with this Earth Day word search.
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Why Should We Compost? Poster
Use this poster set to explain why it is important to compost food scraps.
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Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Rethink Posters
Teach the concepts behind reducing, reusing, recycling, and rethinking waste with this set of 4 posters.
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Earth Day Quotes – Environmental Quote Poster Pack
Inspire sustainable practices in the classroom with a pack of printable Earth Day Quotes.
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Earth Day Word Scramble
Celebrate Earth Day and all things sustainable with this fun word scramble for elementary.
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Earth Day Crafts - Writing Activity
Create a fabulous Earth Day bulletin board with a printable Earth Day craft activity.
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Save the Planet - Earth Words Vocabulary Display
Print and display Earth Day-related terms in your classroom to improve vocabulary and discussion about Earth Day.
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Earth Day Vocabulary and Writing Pack
Help your young students learn and write about Earth Day with an illustrated word wall and writing prompts.
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Trash, Recycle, and Compost Posters
Remind your students where to put their waste with these trash, recycling, and compost posters.
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Recycling Craftivity - We Recycle Because...
Write about why we recycle and create this recycling craft to display in the classroom.
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Our Physical Environment Bingo
Build and master the ability to identify land and water formations in the physical environment with a game of Physical Environment Bingo!
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Earth Day Build a Sentence Worksheet
Build and write sentences about Earth Day with a cut-and-paste Earth Day worksheet for kindergarten and first grade.
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Reading and Writing Nonfiction Text: Earth Day Close Read Worksheets
Enhance your students' comprehension, vocabulary, and writing skills with this nonfiction Earth Day passage and accompanying activities.
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Earth Day Activity Wheel
Encourage students to get involved in environmental responsibility with this collection of 8 Earth Day activities that focus on Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences.
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Endangered Species Fact Cards
Explore 64 species and subspecies that are on the critically endangered list with this set of fact cards.
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Weather Versus Climate Poster
A poster explaining the difference between weather and climate.
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Be Kind to the Planet Template
A template for students to write ways they can be eco-friendly.
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Energy-Saving Tips for the Classroom – Poster
A poster displaying some helpful tips for saving energy in the classroom.
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Acrostic Poem Template - PLANET
An acrostic poem template for the word ‘planet’ to use for Earth Day, during National Poetry Month, and when learning about the solar system.
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Backyard Bingo
A set of 6 bingo cards for kids to use when outside in nature.
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Acrostic Poem Template - OCEAN
An acrostic poem template for the word 'ocean' to use during National Poetry Month and when learning about oceans.