Top Children's Books for Earth Day

Teaching kids to take care of the environment starts with reading! Discover children’s books for Earth Day that will inspire your child.

I’ll be honest: I skip past news about the environment—at least the bad news. I don’t do this because I’m oblivious to the facts or I’m set on disregarding the planet.

Nope—I avoid bad news because it can depress me.

With every frightening hurricane or degree of heat, it’s easy to feel powerless in the face of these tragedies.

That’s why I like to focus on proactive news, especially the steps we can take to care for the environment. From sequestering carbon in the soil to the rise of farmers’ markets, this kind of news inspires and reminds me that we can still do plenty.

Yes, we should support environmental groups and press representatives to focus on the environment. But it’s also empowering to remember that you and I can do a lot as well.

At the end of this article, I’ll share my tips on how families can help. For now, I want to highlight one of the best ways we can honor this planet: reading children’s books for Earth Day.

Children’s books for Earth Day

Reading these books teaches kids to be stewards of the planet, to appreciate what we have, and to be satisfied with enough. While we honor planet earth and bring awareness to the environment on Earth Day, it’s important to sow these values not just once a year, but every day.

These children’s books for Earth Day show the beauty of the planet, inspiring and compelling your child to protect it. And not only because we’re running out of resources, but because we have a responsibility and a desire to preserve what’s important to us.

I hope you and your kids enjoy these books as my kids have, and that they can inspire them to protect the planet:

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links, which means I will earn a commission—at no extra cost to you—if you make a purchase.

Rocket Says Clean Up! by Nathan Bryon and Dapo Adeola

The Big Beach Cleanup by Charlotte Offsay and Katie Rewse

Ocean Soup by Meeg Pincus and Lucy Semple

A Garden to Save the Birds by Wendy McClure and Beatriz Mayumi

One Plastic Bag by Miranda Paul and Elizabeth Zunon

What a Waste by Jess French

The Great Compost Heap by Renaee Smith

My Friend Earth by Patricia MacLachlan and Francesca Sanna

One Earth by by Eileen Spinelli and Rogério Coelho

The Water Lady by Alice B. McGinty and Shonto Begay

Earth Hour by Nanette Heffernan

We Are the Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom

Thank You, Earth by April Pulley Sayre

The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry

Earth Day, Birthday! by Maureen Wright and Violet Kim

Biscuit’s Earth Day Celebration by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Compost Stew by Mary McKenna Siddals and Ashley Wolff

Curious George Plants a Tree by H. A. Rey

The EARTH Book by Todd Parr

Earth Day Every Day by Lisa Bullard and Xiao Xin

Fancy Nancy: Every Day Is Earth Day by Jane O’Connor

Where Does the Garbage Go? by Paul Showers and Randy Chewning

10 Things I Can Do to Help My World by Melanie Walsh

Earth Day—Hooray! by Stuart J. Murphy and Renée Andriani

The Magic School Bus and the Climate Challenge by Joanna Cole

Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel and Alexandra Colombo

Don’t Throw That Away! by Lara Bergen

The Tree Lady by H. Joseph Hopkins

Why Should I Recycle? by Jen Green

Simple ways families can protect the earth

We’ve all heard about the three R’s: reuse, reduce, recycle. Here are a few ways we can do just that, plus two more important R’s: repair and refuse.

Reuse

Use hand-me-downs. These could be from friends and family or bought at consignment stores. Pass along your child’s outgrown clothes to your circle of friends, a donation center, or a consignment store.
Pack utensils and use food containers. Does your child pack a daily lunch for school? Pack reusable utensils instead of disposable, and buy a good container or Thermos for her main meal.
Turn old art projects into new ones. Is your home packed with art projects? Turn them into new ones or use them for scrap paper.

Reduce

Use just enough water and electricity. Don’t fill up the kids’ tub—only use what you need. And turn off the lights in rooms when you’re not spending time there.
Bike or walk to school. If you’re zoned for a local school, you more than likely live close enough to walk or bike to it. Don’t want to walk all the way, or feeling short on time? Drive midway, park the car, and walk the rest of the way. Even once a week is helpful.
Bundle up to stay warm. Save the heater for really cold days and nights. For the rest, layer on sweaters and brew a cup of tea to stay warm.

Recycle

Leave a convenient bin in your kitchen just for recycling. You can do the same in your bathroom.
Recycle old baby gear. It’s tempting to toss old car seats or broken crib parts in the trash, but research local recycling centers that can take them off your hands.
Teach your child to sort trash vs recyclables. Not everything goes in the trash—talk about what goes in the trash and in the recycle bin so she can do this on her own.

Repair

Fix items or toys that break. Don’t be too quick to toss a broken toy that could be fixed with a simple screw. I’m all about decluttering, but if your child truly loves the toy, think of how you can repair it first before tossing it away.
Mend clothes. I’m not one to mend holes in socks, but I’ll gladly sew a button back on or fix a zipper. Better yet, buy quality clothes (like these socks made from recycled water bottles) that last longer.

Refuse

Keep gifts simple. You don’t need to give your kids tons of toys (take a look at the downside of having too many). You can also choose to give the gift of experiences instead.
Rotate toys. It’s natural for your child to grow bored of her current toys, but don’t assume you have to supply her with a new batch. Instead, rotate her current toys: put away a few she’s not really playing with, leaving the rest for her to use. When she gets tired of those, bring out the stored toys and put away the ones she just grew tired of.

Get more tips:

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