As parents or guardians, we all know not to say or do things in front of our kids that we don’t want them saying in public. This is because we know these kids look up to us, they watch us — very closely, and at their young age, whatever we instill in them would have a great effect on who they will turn out to be. Of all the positive values to instill in your child, environmental awareness and concern are essential. If nature is not properly minded, there would not even be a future for them to start with.
Teenagers these days are becoming increasingly aware of environmental issues, and we have school lessons and social media to thank for that. Social media has raised awareness, and popular businesses are developing environmentally-friendly trends that our teenagers can relate to. For example, some popular teen clothing brands have opted for eco-friendly organic cotton that uses 95% less water than traditional cotton. School lessons explained to teens the importance of protecting the environment and showed an awful picture of the Earth, without trees, oceans, and animals, that our planet could become in 100 years if we continue to pollute it.
Tesla created electric cars that cause less air pollution than petrol or fuel-powered cars. Lush cosmetics have a recycling program and also produce their cosmetics without harsh chemicals or animal testing. Without needing to read way too many essays on ecology, these brands have taught our kids all there is to know about taking care of nature. Armed with the information they get on social media and even more they could get from school or college geography class, reading essay examples on ecology, these teens are ready.
Now that our teenagers are showing more interest in the environment because of the awareness put out there by social media, schools, and popular business brands, it is now easier to raise teenagers more aware of environmental issues. For helpful tips on raising teenagers with positive environmental attitudes, read further.
How To Raise Teenagers With Positive Attitudes Towards The Environment
Nurturing your teenager to respect nature can take many turns. Here are tips in which to help them understand better:
Start With Books And Movies
At first, your teenager might find it hard to form an emotional connection to their environment. For the book lovers, get them a book. You can interest the teenager with a good book and explain that with the new knowledge gained in the book, the teenager will get a high score for their knowledge in school or college in geography lessons. For movie lovers, find a movie that teaches environmental education in a way that doesn’t seem monotonous. An interesting film will form a child’s love for the environment. Nowadays, many films are used in university lectures for students, such as “Mowgli” or “Our Planet.”
Take Your Teenager Outside
This is another way to not only create environmental awareness but also develop a great family connection. You can take your teenager fishing, as this will make them more aware of the body of water. You can take them hiking into the woods for a personal and up-close relationship with the trees.
Teach Them to Recycle
It is important to let your teenager know that instead of outrightly throwing out items, it should be reused to save energy and prevent environmental pollution in the environment. You can help your teenager use old shoe boxes or newspapers to make beautiful projects for school. Before throwing anything out, be sure to inspire them to use it to create something creative and memorable.
Minimize The Use of Plastic at Home
Plastic water bottles, plastic bags, all these are very harmful to the environment, and you should explain these, in simple terms, to your kid. Plastics end up in the ocean, killing millions of aquatic animals, or they end up on land, posing an equally devastating amount of risk to terrestrial animals too. Plastics also contain some chemicals that are harmful to humans. There are many healthy and eco-friendly alternatives to plastics. By giving your teen a lunch at school, you can replace a plastic water bottle with a thermos and a disposable plastic food bag with a reusable container.
Plant Your Own Garden
Plant a garden at home, give them the task of tending to it. Watching fruit grow from a simple seed would give them a thorough understanding of nature and the reasons to protect it. Today, many schools and colleges have small orchards with fruit trees that schoolchildren and students can look after in geography and ecology lessons. After that, children are given the task to write creative work about the environment and describe their opinion on why caring for the environment is important.
Volunteer
When you volunteer with your kids, you are showing them that you practice what you preach. You can make flyers and posters, take them to schools to help generate more awareness. As parents and teachers, nature vs nurture should be explained to our teens, and ecology must be taught in schools. Students should be asked to read a lot of essays on nature to help them understand better.
If this is done in schools, it will make it easier for parents to hold down the fort. Be a great model to your kids. Let us all make a combined effort in equipping our teenagers for the future.
Conclusion
Before your teenager goes off to university or college, you want to be sure you have raised someone who is constantly aware of how their choices affect the environment and steps to take to make it better. Start equipping them now.
