This simple experiment shows you what happens when pollutants get into the water system.

Materials:

• Celery stalk
• Two white flowers
• Food coloring
• Three glass jars
• Knife
• Water

Pour about two inches of water into each jar and add several drops of food coloring. Trim the flower and celery stems and stand them in the colored water. Let them stand for several hours or overnight. You will see that as the plant drinks the water it also drinks the pollution (i.e. the food coloring) that is in it.

Poisonous gases are constantly being released into the atmosphere from factories, power stations and car exhausts. When some of these gases mix with water, they make the water acidic. When these gases mix with rain clouds, they dissolve in the moisture of the clouds and form acid rain. Here is an experiment to show you how acid rain affects plants.

Materials:

• Three  big glass jars
• Three  spray bottles (One will do if you mix thoroughly between waterings.)
• Measuring cup
• Pen
• Labels
• Vinegar
• Water
• Three small potted plants, ones you can allow to die.

Fill one jar with one cup of water and label “water”. Fill one jar 1/4 cup full with vinegar and 3/4 cup full of water and label “slightly acid”. Fill one jar with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup vinegar and label “stronger acid.” Label each of the potted plants “water”, “slightly acid” and “stronger acid”. Stand the plants in a row. Every day water and spray each one with the mixture from the jar that matches its label.

Wait a week and see what happens. What happens to the plant that receives only water? And what happens to the plants that get the acidic water? Make a record to see how long it takes the plants watered with the stronger acid to die.

In anticipation of Earth Day coming up on April 22nd, I will be featuring Earth Awareness Activities every day until then. These are great projects to do with children at home or at school that help raise awareness about our most prescious resources– the air, the water, the land and our children.

How Dirty is Your Air?

Materials:

• Seven glass- jar lids or bottle caps
• Large piece of white cardboard
• Marking pen
• Labels

Write numbers one to seven on the cardboard. Leave enough space to be able to cover each number with a lid. Stick labels onto the jar lids and number them from one to seven. Lay the jar lids on the cardboard, matching the numbers. Put the cardboard and lids outside in a sheltered spot. At the end of the first day, take away lid number one. Each day take away one more lid. At the end of a week, take away the last lid. You can see how dirty the air is if the patches where the first lids were are darker than the others.

This is a family recipe. My mother baked this cake every fall. Add a little extra apples for a moister cake.

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of oil
• 2 1/2 tsp. of vanilla
• 3 cups of flour
• 3 tsp. of baking powder
• 1 tsp of salt
• juice of one orange or 3/4 cups of OJ
• 4 large apples
• 3 T of sugar
• 2  tsp. of cinnamon

Peel and chop the apples and sprinkle with the cinnamon and 3 T of sugar. Beat the eggs and add the 2 cups sugar and oil, juice of orange and vanilla. Sift flour in separate bowl and add to the eggs and sugar mixture.  Put half of the batter in pan, half of the apples and then rest of batter and top with remaining apples. Grease and flour pan and bake 1 1/4 hours at 350 or until done.

You will need:
Paper
Autumn leaves, preferably just picked from the tree
Colored pencils or crayons

Start by taking a sheet of paper and folding it in half width-wise. Place a leaf, vein side up, inside the folded sheet. Use the colored pencils or crayons to gently rub over the leaf so that the leaf becomes visible on the top of the paper. Use a variety of colors to create a multicolored effect. Remove the leaf and repeat with other leaves and colors. Mail to a friend or relative. Smaller versions can be used as place cards.

You will need:
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 bag (10 oz) mini marshmallows
Yellow food coloring
8 cups combined peanut butter and chocolate puffed corn cereal
1 cup candy-coated chocolate pieces like peanut or plain M & M’s.
Spray oil
10 lollipop sticks
Tan and green raffia

Line a large baking sheet with waxed paper and set aside. Melt butter or margarine in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until melted and smooth. Tint with food coloring until you reach desired color. Add cereal and 1/2 cup chocolate pieces. Stir to evenly coated. Remove from heat.

Spray hands with oil and quickly divide mixture into 10 oblong pieces. Push lollipop sticks halfway into each oblong piece and shape to look like an ear of corn. Place on cookie sheet covered with waxed paper and press remaining 1/2 cup chocolate pieces into each “ear”. Let treats set. Tie or tape raffia to lollipop sticks to resemble corn husks.

Ingredients:
1 pint cranberry juice cocktail
1 quart apple juice
1 cup water
6 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Mix all the ingredients together in a large saucepan. Let simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Strain and serve.

You will need:
2 lbs. firm apples cut into quarters
1/2 cup apple cider
1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground allspice
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

Place the apples, cider and 1/2 cup water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until apples are soft, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and pass through a food mill. Return to saucepan and add the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, lemon zest and lemon juice. Cook over low heat and stir occasionally, until very thick and dark brown, about 2 to 3 hours. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate up to 2 weeks.

Now that the kids are out of school you will need fun activities to entertain them and keep them busy and occupied. When my children were small they loved to finger paint, which, as you all know, is  messy. When the weather got warmer, I would put my girls in their bathing suits and give each of them a paper plate “palette” with several  dollops of finger paint colors. Then I would put a  white  shower curtain liner on the driveway and let them paint away. More often than not they ended up painting each other, but I didn’t mind. At the end of the day I hosed them down along with everything else.  They had a blast. It was moments like that, watching my children experience sheer creative joy that I thought to myself, “Do not for one minute ever tell me that you did not have a wonderful childhood.”

Note: Make sure the finger paint is washable. I have learned from experience that certain colors, like green, don’t always come out. Just in case, make sure you and your kids wear clothing that you don’t mind getting a few stains on. Happy painting! If you try this project, please write in and leave a comment so we can all hear about how much fun you had.

Another great group activity for a birthday, play date or class project.

Materials:
Small clay flower pots
Tile grout
Trowel or knife to smooth grout
Decorative objects like tiles, sea glass, sea shells, beads, acorns etc.
Damp cloth

Give each child a small flower pot and some tile grout to smear on the outside of the pot. Explain to them that they are going to decorate the outside of the pot with the objects. They can cover the entire pot or make a pattern. It is up to them to use their own imagination and creativity. Once the tile is set and the objects are secure, gently wipe away any tile grout that is on the decorations. If you have time, you can take this project one step further by planting flowers in the pots.