Friday, August 26, 2011
How to help your child be eco-friendly and save money
Kids don't always understand the importance of being eco-friendly and may take some persuading.
This is easier said than done but don't give up before you try a few of these suggestions!
1) Gardening
Get your child a set of garden tools just their size. If you have a little girl that likes pink, go ahead and get her some cute pink garden tools. If that's what it takes to get your child interested, the couple of dollars will pay off and could make your child a life-long gardener.
Set aside a separate area that your child can be responsible for in the garden. Whether it is some flowers, or even a small tomato plant, having their own separate space to take care of may give your child motivation and interest in caring for the plants.
2) Eating & Drinking
Does your child like bottled water? Save by getting your child a cute reusable bpa-free cup. Maybe even let your child pick it out so that it feels like their decision.
Create your own snack sizes and juice boxes. Use reusable containers (or ziploc baggies that can be rinsed out and reused) and presort snack sized amounts of your favorite treats. Have you ever noticed that the amount per ounce goes up drastically when you buy the portion sized packages? This will save your money AND be eco-friendly.
Pack a school lunch. Have a lunch box that your child is not embarrassed to take to school and use reusable containers that can be washed out after school and ready to use the next day.
3) Shopping
Let your child take his or her own reusable bag to the grocery store. This will create good habits at a younger age. Some stores even reduce your purchase amount for each reusable bag you have. As a reward, you could give that spare change to your child as a reward for being eco-friendly with you.
Visit the thrift store and yard sales. What better way to save money AND be eco-friendly by reusing toys and clothing? Give our child a budget and see what he or she finds. It will be fun for your child to look for things while also spending little. It will also teach the value of money.
What are your tips and suggestions?
Please leave comments below with your favorites and I will add them later as user submitted suggestions.
This is easier said than done but don't give up before you try a few of these suggestions!
1) Gardening
Get your child a set of garden tools just their size. If you have a little girl that likes pink, go ahead and get her some cute pink garden tools. If that's what it takes to get your child interested, the couple of dollars will pay off and could make your child a life-long gardener.
Set aside a separate area that your child can be responsible for in the garden. Whether it is some flowers, or even a small tomato plant, having their own separate space to take care of may give your child motivation and interest in caring for the plants.
2) Eating & Drinking
Does your child like bottled water? Save by getting your child a cute reusable bpa-free cup. Maybe even let your child pick it out so that it feels like their decision.
Create your own snack sizes and juice boxes. Use reusable containers (or ziploc baggies that can be rinsed out and reused) and presort snack sized amounts of your favorite treats. Have you ever noticed that the amount per ounce goes up drastically when you buy the portion sized packages? This will save your money AND be eco-friendly.
Pack a school lunch. Have a lunch box that your child is not embarrassed to take to school and use reusable containers that can be washed out after school and ready to use the next day.
3) Shopping
Let your child take his or her own reusable bag to the grocery store. This will create good habits at a younger age. Some stores even reduce your purchase amount for each reusable bag you have. As a reward, you could give that spare change to your child as a reward for being eco-friendly with you.
Visit the thrift store and yard sales. What better way to save money AND be eco-friendly by reusing toys and clothing? Give our child a budget and see what he or she finds. It will be fun for your child to look for things while also spending little. It will also teach the value of money.
What are your tips and suggestions?
Please leave comments below with your favorites and I will add them later as user submitted suggestions.
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1 comments:
I really like the idea of letting my children bring their own reusable bag to the grocery store, it teaches them to help the earth a little while also helping Mommy shop and maybe even make the shopping trip a little more enjoyable for us all :]
Kelly Paradise
kellyparadise@comcast.net