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Friday:  Appreciate our Earth through art and writing.

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Friday:  Appreciate our Earth through art and writing.

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Hi Bobcats! Click the NASA link below to learn all about our Earth! What an amazing planet we live on!

Your final challenge this week is to create a family Earth Journal. You can use a notebook or create your own with paper you have around the house. Decorate the cover and label it Earth Day 2020.  Your can use this journal to sketch a bird in your backyard, make some leaf rubbings, log the types of clouds you see in the sky, write a poem about the Earth or anything else that inspires you about the world around you!

Send a picture of your journal cover or your favorite journal entry to cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us so we can show them off!

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Earth | NASA Space Place – NASA Science for Kids

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Articles, games and activities about our home planet

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                         Bobcat Nation Earth Day Challenges      

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                         Bobcat Nation Earth Day Challenges      

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April 22nd is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day! Every day this week we will post an Earth Day challenge for our Bobcat families! Have fun together as you complete the challenges and celebrate our amazing Earth.

Make sure to send your pictures and videos to cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us!

We will choose a few each day to post on EK8's Facebook page.

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Our planet is an amazing place, but it needs our help to thrive! That's why each year on April 22, more than a billion people celebrate Earth Day to protect the planet from things like pollution and deforestation. By taking part in activities like picking up litter and planting trees, we're making our world a happier, healthier place to live.

The first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970, when a United States senator from Wisconsin organized a national demonstration to raise awareness about environmental issues. Rallies took place across the country and, by the end of the year, the U.S. government had created the Environmental Protection Agency. By 1990, Earth Day was an event celebrated by more than 140 countries around the globe.

You can celebrate and protect the planet at the same time. Check out these Earth Day ideas to help save the planet any time of year.

BECOME A WASTE WARRIOR

The number of garbage trucks Americans fill each year would stretch halfway to the moon. Toilet paper tubes, made from cardboard, take two months to decompose in a landfill. A plastic bottle sticks around for way longer-it can take over 450 years to break down! But instead of turning to the trash bin, you could turn these items into an awesome telescope or a flower planter. Before you throw something away, think about whether it can be recycled or repurposed. You can also limit waste by reducing the amount of things you buy. For example, check the library for that book you have to read before visiting the store.

PLANT A TREE

Researchers estimate roughly 15 billion trees in the world are cut down each year, so help offset that loss by planting a tree of your own. Trees absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen for people to breathe. They also provide shelter and food for animals such as squirrels and owls. Depending on where trees are planted, their shade can even reduce the need for air-conditioning in hotter months. How many more reasons do you need to go green?

TURN OFF THE LIGHTS

Does that lamp really need to be on while the sun is out? Electricity doesn't just happen-it has to be produced from things around us. A lot of times it comes from fossil fuels (such as coal, oil, or natural gas) that contribute to climate change. But electricity can also be made from renewable sources like wind, water, the sun, and even elephant dung! No matter where it's coming from, try conserving electrical energy by using only what you need.

LIMIT YOUR WATER USAGE

It might seem like it's everywhere, but clean, drinkable water is a limited resource. In fact less than one percent of the water on Earth can be used by humans. (The rest is either too salty or too difficult to access.) Turning off the faucet when you brush your teeth can conserve up to eight gallons of water a day. To help save even more water, challenge yourself to take a shorter shower (but still get clean!).

OFFER YOUR TIME

With a parent's permission, volunteer to pick up trash at a nearby park, start a collection drive for recyclable items, or organize a screening of an environmentally themed movie. By getting involved and working with others, you're not just helping the Earth-you're making new friends too!

SPREAD THE MESSAGE

Talk to your friends and family members about what you're doing and ask them to help. Need to get the conversation started? Get everyone together and reconnect with nature by taking one of our Get Outside challenges, or check out some other green tips you can share. The more people do, the better off our planet will be!

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Our planet is an amazing place, but it needs our help to thrive! That's why each year on April 22, more than a billion people celebrate Earth Day to protect the planet from things like pollution and deforestation. By taking part in activities like picking up litter and planting trees, we're making our world a happier, healthier place to live.

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Thursday: Create an Earth Day Mobile out of repurposed materials! 

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Thursday: Create an Earth Day Mobile out of repurposed materials! 

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Hello Bobcats! Watch the video below to see ideas kids just like you came up with to build cars that use renewable forms of energy and keep Earth clean!

Today's Earth Day challenge is to use egg cartons, cereal boxes, soda bottles, toilet paper rolls,  Amazon boxes, or anything else you have around the house and create an eco-friendly Earth Day Mobile. Your Earth Day Mobile can be a boat, car, spaceship, motorcycle or any other type of vehicle you can think of. Decorate it to show your pride in our Earth!

Send pictures of your Earth Day Mobile to: cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us

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Kids Envision Fuel-Efficient Cars of the Future

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What do future car owners see themselves driving one day? Consumer Reports talked to participants in Disney's Create Tomorrowland XPRIZE Challenge to explore their futuristic ideas. This video was made possible by funding from the Energy Foundation.

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Wednesday: Earth Day Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt

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Wednesday: Earth Day Neighborhood Scavenger Hunt

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Hi Bobcats! Today's Earth Day Challenge is to take a walk with your family to find as many of the items on the scavenger hunt activity sheet as you can. Make sure to practice social distancing as you walk around. Just download the scavenger hunt below and then either print it or snap a picture of it.

Send a selfie of your family with your completed scavenger hunt when you are all finished to cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us

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All of  Earth's creatures need a cozy place to call home. Watch the video below to see some baby Bobcats in their dens.

Today's challenge has two parts.
1. Build an amazing Bobcat Den to relax in.
2. Make a sign to hold up thanking all the healthcare workers, first responders and essential workers for keeping us safe and making sure we have all the things we need so we can be cozy at home in our dens.

Let's show our BOBCAT families serving in these roles how grateful we are for them! Send pictures with you in your den with your thank you sign to cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us

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Bobcat Kittens Play and Tumble | The Secret Life of Animals

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Monday: Rube Goldberg Engineering Challenge

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Monday: Rube Goldberg Engineering Challenge

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Hi Bobcats! Recycling and repurposing materials helps to preserve our Earth's precious resources!

Our first Earth Day Challenge is to Engineer a Rube Goldberg machine using recyclable materials and anything else you can find lying around your house!

Watch the video below from PBS Kids to get inspired. Then, check out Engineering Kids Tinkerlab for more videos and ideas! There is also a great list of supplies you can use.

Make sure to send your videos to cuevas_t@hcsb.k12.fl.us or dill_j@hcsb.k12.fl.us so all of Bobcat Nation can see your engineering skills!

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Watch the design process in action with educational how-to videos of engineering projects and activities kids can try at home.