We’re so excited! Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd. Around here, we simply aren’t capable of limiting our Earth celebration to just one day. So we’ve taken it upon ourselves to call April “Earth Month” and we’ll be sharing eco-tips and activities all month long on the blog. Once a week, we’ll feature a fun kid-oriented and earth-friendly project.This week’s project helps your kids immortalize their favorite small objects (or hands or feet) using your leftover coffee and coffee grounds. Our favorite coffee grounds come from Allegro Coffee because they believe that strong, healthy communities start with a healthy planet. In 2004, Allegro became 100% Replanted by committing to replant five trees in their coffee growing regions for every tree’s worth of paper they use. Allegro also pays its farming partners a fair price for their crops. Paying growers a fair price provides them the means to reinvest in their farms, hire and keep the best workers and stay in business for a long time.
Now let’s get started! To ensure you’ve got everything you need to begin, gather your materials and then spread them out on your work area. This project can be done just about anywhere — at the kitchen table, on a deck or patio, or in the yard. The best part for grown-ups is that you can begin this project by sipping a rich cup (or two) of coffee.To make one fossil, you will need:
1 cup of used coffee grounds1/2 cup of cold coffee1 cup of flour1/2 cup of saltWax paper
Mixing bowlSome small objects to make impressions in the doughAn empty can or cookie cutterEmpty shoebox or shallow pan to dry fossil in overnightOnce you have your materials assembled, follow these simple steps:Step 1Stir together the coffee grounds, cold coffee, flour and salt until well mixed. Knead the dough together and then flatten it out onto the wax paper.
Step 2Use the empty can to cut out a circle in the dough. Press the objects firmly into the dough. Remove the object to see its impression. Place the fossil in the empty shoebox or pan to allow for overnight drying.Did you miss the first project? It was a compact herb garden planted in an aluminum can opens in a new tab from your recycling bin.So tell us, what are some of your favorite earth-friendly projects for kids?
