Earth Day 2015 allows us a fresh start to consume more consciously! If you are a parent, you are always shopping for a toy for someone – birthdays, Christmas, afikomen finding (yes, she went there) – but mostly for other kids parties! It feels like every weekend we run to the toy store for a gift – running like a madwoman to grab a toy the kid already probably has. Toy stores are limited in their selections, and often don’t carry toy brands with green ethics. Instead of adding more crap to our landfills, and more unused presents to our friends toy cabinets – why not choose sustainably created toys as gifts which are thoughtful to parents, kids, and planet alike! Our kids test-ran all the toys on the list below and they all got an emphatic thumbs up for our GGA kid crew!
6 Great Eco-Friendly Toys That Are Earth Day Approved
We are big fans of the Green Toys brand – Made in the USA, made from recycled milk cartons toys – Green Toys Inc. makes an awesome line of classic children’s toys (and plates which we use and love!) constructed from recycled plastic and other environmentally friendly materials. This helps reduce fossil fuel use and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improving the overall health and happiness of our Mama Earth. Here are a few of their newest releases that are perfect for spring:
Green Toys Watering Can
Perfect for the garden, and also fun at the beach and sandbox, the Watering Can is a classic set that encourages kids to help take care of the world around them. Made in the USA from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs, it features an easy-to-pour spout and cotton rope carrying handle that make this set frustration-free for little gardeners. It’s great for spending time together outside, and kids will love helping and playing alongside the grownups to watch their garden grow. And…it’s even fun in the tub! No BPA, phthalates, PVC, or external coatings. Dishwasher Safe. Packaged using recycled and recyclable materials and printed with soy inks. Recommended for ages 18 months and up.
Green Toys Indoor Gardening Kit
Young plant lovers can watch nature at work by growing a beautiful flower garden and fresh herbs in just days with the world’s most earth-happy gardening set. Like all Green Toys products, it’s made from advanced environmentally friendly materials, all in the name of Good Green Fun! Ages 5 and up officially, but we would totally do this (supervised) with an 18 month old – and up.
Green Toys Train
The Green Toys Train is ready to chug along from one eco-friendly adventure to the next. The brightly-colored steam engine pulls two additional cars that link together to form a long train, or easily unhook for stand-alone play. Available in blue or pink. Ages 3+
Hydropower
Hydropower has been used for hundreds of years in watermills and is now commonly used to generate electricity in applications such as hydroelectric dams and tidal power plants. Use this kit to explore the power of water by building models and conducting experiments with them. Kid learn about how different devices are used to extract useful energy from moving water — from a waterwheel in a small stream to a giant turbine in a tidal power station. Build a waterwheel, a sawmill, and a hammer mill to harness the energy of moving water to do different types of physical work. Investigate the intriguing properties of water by performing experiments involving surface tension, adhesion, and cohesion. Learn about water pressure by building a water tower, communicating vessels, and a water fountain. Construct a hydroelectric power station to generate electricity and light an LED. Learn about where the energy in ocean waves, tides, and rivers comes from, and discover how we can generate electricity from them. The full-color, 32-page experiment manual offers illustrated instructions and scientific information. And thought it’s recommended for ages 8 and up, our very bright 5 year old enjoyed doing this project with his Dad. This is a super brilliant toy – science-lovers will go mad for it!
Grass Head
Make your own shaggy green friend with soil for brains and grass for hair. Simply wrap the growing medium and grass seeds in the stretchy pouch, position it on the plastic (recyclable) body, and decorate it with the stickers to create the character of your choice. After a few days, the grass hair begins to sprout through the pouch, and soon you’ll be able to give your friend their first haircut. Recommended for ages 8+ – but our 2 and 4 year olds loved doing this with us! Grass Head is extremely silly.
Tegu Stunt Team
The sustainable and eco-friendly creators of the award-winning wooden building block system has launched their Stunt Team and it’s adorable and a total hit in our household. Anyone who’s played with their magnetic wooden blocks knows kids are crazy about this line of toys which give kids the ability to build beyond the traditional constraints of gravity. Working with the polarity of the magnets on the fly is a fun challenge; it generates more critical thinking and educational opportunities than you might expect, and critical thinking is good! Made from eco-friendly, sustainably-sourced Central American hardwoods, safe, non-toxic, water-based lacquers (for colors and clear coats) – this toy is for ages 3+ – but we have a one year old who would totally play with – and love – this toy. We also love the ethics of Tegu; “As a vertically-integrated company, we intimately know our supply chain and suppliers.” Score!
