Earth Day ideas for OSHC
30 DIY activities for a earth day at before and after school care or vacation care, usually run around 22 April or 20 May. Pick and mix, or build a balanced day in one click.
Balloon Bongo Drums
Children turn recycled tins into drums by stretching balloon skins over the top, then play rhythms together.
World Bee Day · Gardening Day · Bug Day +3Bee Hotel Build
Children fill a tin or bottle with bamboo pieces and hollow stems to create a home for native solitary bees.
Recycle Day · Sustainable Superstars · Earth Day +3Bottle Top Mosaic
Children sort collected bottle tops by colour and glue them onto a board to make bright mosaic pictures, turning plastic waste into art.
NAIDOC Week · Reconciliation Week · Gardening Day +3Bush Tucker Garden
Children plant native food species with guidance from a local Aboriginal organisation or nursery, learning how to care for them.
Reconciliation Week · Clean Up Australia Day · Environmental Day +3Caring for Country Walk
Children pick up litter and notice native plants on a nature walk. Connects caring for the environment with respect for Country.
Earth Day · Environmental Day · World Oceans Day +1Coffee Filter Earths
Children colour coffee filters with blue and green markers and spray them so the colours blend into a bright planet Earth.
Gardening Day · Sustainable Superstars · Recycle Day +3Compost Bin Start-Up
Children sort food scraps into compost and non-compost piles, then start a compost bin and learn what breaks down and why.
Sustainable Superstars · Recycle Day · Clean Up Australia Day +2Daily Waste Audit
Older children weigh and sort the day's rubbish to see what the service throws away and plan ways to reduce it.
Environmental Day · Clean Up Australia Day · Earth Day +2Environmental Action Day
Children take part in a litter clean-up, sort waste into the right bins and share a waste-free afternoon tea.
Bug Day · World Bee Day · Sustainable Superstars +3Homemade Beeswax Wraps
Older children help make reusable food wraps by melting beeswax into cotton squares, learning about reducing plastic waste and the role of bees.
Nature Play Day · Science Week · Raw Art Day +3Homemade Natural Paints
Children make paints from kitchen ingredients like turmeric, beetroot and herbs, then test the colours on paper.
Clean Up Australia Day · Recycle Day · Environmental Day +2Litter Sorting Graph
Children sort clean collected rubbish into types and create a graph to show what they found.
Milk Day · Bird Watching Day · Recycle Day +3Milk Carton Bird Feeder
Children turn empty milk cartons into bird feeders, then hang them outdoors and watch for visitors.
Sustainable Superstars · Bird Watching Day · Recycle Day +3Milk Carton Bird Feeders
Children turn clean milk cartons into bird feeders, fill them with seed and hang them outdoors to watch for visitors.
National Tree Day · Gardening Day · Earth Day +3Native Seedling Planting
Children plant native seedlings in the service grounds or a community site, learning how trees support wildlife and the environment.
Rock and Gem Day · Raw Art Day · Art Through the Ages +2Natural Pigment Mural
Children grind soft rocks, clay and earth into natural pigments, mix them with water and paint a mural outdoors.
Earth Day · Nature Play Day · Outdoor Explorers +2Nature Walk Bracelets
Children wear masking tape bracelets sticky-side out and collect small leaves, petals and seeds on a nature walk.
Earth Day · Bird Watching Day · Nature Play Day +1Pine Cone Bird Feeders
Children roll pine cones in a nut-free spread and birdseed to hang outside, then watch for visiting birds.
World Oceans Day · Clean Up Australia Day · Recycle Day +3Plastic in the Ocean Demo
Children add plastic items to a tub of water with toy sea creatures, see how plastic tangles and floats, and test ways to clean it up.
Recycle Day · Sustainable Superstars · Science Week +3Recycled Paper Making
Older children turn scrap paper into pulp and press it into new sheets of handmade paper, seeing the recycling process up close.
Recycle Day · Clean Up Australia Day · Sustainable Superstars +3Recycling Sort Relay
Teams race to sort clean rubbish into the right bins, learning which items belong in recycling, compost or landfill.
Clean Up Australia Day · Recycle Day · Sustainable Superstars +3Rubbish Art Sculpture
Children turn clean collected rubbish into a creative sculpture to display.
Wild Rescue · Threatened Species Day · Environmental Day +1Save a Species Poster
Children create a campaign poster to help protect an animal, with a strong message and a picture.
Clean Up Australia Day · Environmental Day · Earth Day +3Schoolyard Litter Clean-Up
Teams with gloves and tongs collect and tally rubbish around the grounds, caring for their space.
Gardening Day · Earth Day · National Tree Day +3Seed Bombs
Children mix clay, compost and native seeds into small balls to scatter in garden beds, helping bring bare patches to life.
Sustainable Superstars · Gardening Day · Recycle Day +2Self-Watering Bottle Planters
Children turn plastic bottles into self-watering planters, sow seeds and watch them grow over the following weeks.
National Tree Day · Nature Play Day · Outdoor Explorers +2Tree Bark Rubbings
Children rub crayons over paper held against tree bark to reveal and compare the textures of different trees.
Clean Up Australia Day · World Oceans Day · Environmental Day +3Waterways Pollution Demo
Children use a simple model to see how litter on the ground travels through drains into waterways.
Gardening Day · Sustainable Superstars · Recycle Day +3Worm Farm and Compost
Children set up a worm farm and compost bin and feed them afternoon tea scraps, learning how waste becomes soil.
Earth Day · Recycle Day · Clean Up Australia Day +2Woven Recycled Place Mats
Children weave strips of junk mail and cereal boxes into sturdy, colourful place mats.