Do you realize that every single day is designated as a special day? You know like National Hot Dog Day?

But, just like in life, some days rise to the top. They get a lot of buzz, gain followers, and get popular. See I told you it was like life, lol. Earth Day is one of those days! It has gained momentum year after year since its debut in 1970. Every year, Earth Day organizers and event planners go all out to spread their message (in yearly themes). It seems like some years the message gets across better than others. 

Anyway, all this buzz and energy about conserving the environment and saving our Earth from destructive practices provide great, ample opportunities for reading, writing, critical thinking, literacy in science and technical subjects, art — everything related to celebrating and protecting the natural wonders of our Earth. So, here are some ideas for you, which you can use all April long in English language arts. 

Here are some ideas for Earth Day (and all of April) in ELA:

1) Quick-Write Response to One of These Writing Prompts:

A) The theme of 2022’s Earth Day is Invest in Our Planet. The statement below is from the organizers’ website: 

“Because a green future is a prosperous future.

We need to act (boldly), innovate (broadly), and implement (equitably). It’s going to take all of us. All in. Businesses, governments, and citizens — everyone accounted for, and everyone accountable. A partnership for the planet.”

Ask students to write for ten minutes about what they think the theme “Invest In Our Planet” means — who should invest? When? Why? How? THIS IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO TEACH THEME! (Have them summarize the article too if you have time – literacy in science!)

B) Last year in 2021, the home page of the Earth Day website stated, “As the world returns to normal, we can’t go back to business as usual.” Write that in your own words while explaining what it means. Also, now that it has been a year, have we gone back to normal, and/or have we gone back to business as usual? Will we ever? Should we? Have student write about it for ten minutes.

2) Write a Short Research Report on a Specific Topic Such As…:

A) This April there will be a United Nations convention on Global Diversity, an urgent matter that must be attended to by world leaders working together. They will discuss the problem of unprecedented extinction rates, climate change causing havoc to habitats, the urgent nature of this problem, and possible solutions. Have students research any facet of this, and how about have them write a problem-solution opinion or argumentative essay? 

B) Last year, President Biden helped host a global climate summit that took place during Earth Day 2021 (4/22/21). One of the topics they discussed was the Paris Agreement. What is the Paris Agreement?

C) A big focus of Earth Day every year is the climate. They state that “together we can prevent coming disasters of climate change and environmental destruction.” What is happening with the climate? What is being destroyed?

D) What are you allowed and not allowed to recycle in your recycle bins at home? Why and why not? Could you improve how you recycle? If you don’t know what the “rules” are for recycling, how could you find out what they are?

3) Delve Into Literature: A) Take a break from the literal and escape into the allegorical…Find literature to have your students read and decode, such as The Lorax, The Giving Tree, Walden, The Jungle, My First Summer in the Sierra, and many more.

4) Free 1-Page Informational Text & Vocabulary Task: Here is a free easy-print or digital version of a passage and vocabulary task you can use today. Students will discover the reason for Earth Day, its history, how it affects public policy, the yearly themes (including the one for 2022), and more.

5) Write a Persuasive Essay or Opinion Piece: Have each student choose a topic related to Earth Day, conservation, climate change, a great idea he or she has, a practice everyone should do to help restore the Earth, recycling, etc.

Here are some persuasive arguments to emulate : 1) A Ted Talk (with written transcript if you need) called “Why Not Eat Insects?” by Marcel Dicke 2) “Stop the Waste” student opinion piece.

6) Read an Opinion, Then Write an Opinion: Have students do some standardized writing test prep that’s no prep at all! It’s ANOTHER FREEBIE in which students 1) Read an opinion piece and watch a short video by a Secretary of State advocating for protecting the oceans, and 2) Write an opinion or argument of their own, citing text evidence, stating what they and their peers can do to help protect the oceans.

7) Get Inspired by a True Story in a Short Video & Journal About It: A documentary called “A Simple Question: The Story of STRAW” shows what happened in the 1990s when educator Laurette Rogers explained to one of her fourth-grade classes the concept of endangered species. Students asked what they could do to help. This question launched a program that’s still in practice called STRAW—Students and Teachers Restoring a Watershed—which engages hundreds of schoolchildren in watershed restoration efforts across Northern California.

Quick-Write About It: Have students write their opinion of what they just watched, explain what is inspirational about this story, state what lessons they can learn from what they saw, consider how they can become environmental action heroes themselves, and more.

8) Free 1-Page Passage & ELA Test: Students read an excerpt from “You are Brilliant and the Earth is Hiring,” a commencement address by Paul Hawken. Students grades 6-12 also complete an assessment that focuses on nuances in language, tone, and citing evidence to support inferences.

9) Students in Grades 4-12 Might Also Like:

I HOPE YOU AND YOUR STUDENTS LOVE EARTH DAY IN ELA!

You know what else students LOVE? These high-interest informational texts and tasks. I went out of my way to make the articles super interesting to upper elementary and middle schoolers by writing about things that interest them. And, guess what? It worked. I keep hearing from teachers how kids get so into these passages. They actually want to answer the questions. They even want to discuss the articles as a group. 

Volume I was so popular with students in grades 6-8 that I just HAD to create Volume II. Kids love them both!

These are the ORIGINAL best-sellers for Middle School that kids love:

And now, workbooks for High School are here!

Would you like to try a FREE one first?