DIRT & BUGS IN THE BACKYARD

COMPOSTING & WORMS:  Really?  Why?

By Emily S.

Okay, this article is dedicated to my brother, Bradley.

  Like most boys, he likes bugs and dirt and hanging out in the backyard and enjoying both of them.  I like the backyard, too but for different reasons.  I like the swings, the trampoline, riding my bike – but bugs? No, thanks.

Hello guys.  Meet "Afro". 

So, a few days ago Bradley brought home a bean plant, that he named Afro, in a newspaper pot. Okay?? He told my mom that he needed to put it in soil and put earthworms in it so that the worms could eat through the newspaper. The worms would provide important food for the plant to grow and one day we could enjoy the beans for dinner.  It was this conversation that started an entire family plan for composting.  Worms make me about as excited as I am about bugs.  Yay. *shaking my head*

I understood a little about composting, but thanks to Bradley, Afro and the earthworms, I understand even more now.

Soil is another wonderful treasure that we have on the earth.  Soil gives life.  It gives plants what they need to grow. Those plants provide food for humans and animals.  Soil also provides a place for bugs to live. Yay. Soil is very important in supporting a lot of lives. Including mine.  

We can turn the food we eat back into soil by composting and earthworms are a big help in that process.  Worms eat the waste and then excrete waste which is really important in making rich soil.  Plants grow well in rich soil.

Watch this video to learn more about composting and how important worms are to the process.

Every year, each of us tosses out nearly 1,200 pounds of organic garbage.  Organic garbage is garbage that was once alive, like food scraps, grass clippings and leaves.  If we compost this garbage instead of throwing it away, we can make new dirt and then grow new plants in it! 

I now have a new love for dirt and worms and bugs.  I don’t plan to join my brother for playing with them in the backyard, but I am glad that we have them.  This is such a great world that we live in.

Check back for updates on our composting project!

Much fun in the backyard,

Emily

JOIN ME FOR A JOURNEY!

THE LIFE OF A SODA CAN

by Emily S.
 

WHERE IT STARTS Cans are made from aluminum (a-lu-mi-num). Aluminum is a natural resource. This means that it is found in the earth. Aluminum is the most abundant metal on earth. We have to dig into the earth, take it out and transport it to a factory.  

AT THE FACTORY When aluminum gets to the factory it is processed, purified, cleaned and pressed into flat sheets. The sheets are then shipped to soda companies.

AT THE SODA COMPANY When the sheets arrive at the soda company, they are shaped into the cans that we drink from. The cans are painted with the company's name, filled with the beverage, sealed, and shipped to stores to sell to us, the consumer.

AT THE STORE AND TAKE IT HOME 

We go to the store and buy our favorite soda, mine is Sprite.  We take it home and drink it. There are 2 things we can do with the soda can when we finish:   throw it away or recycle it.

If you throw it away, it goes to a landfill. It will stay there for hundreds or even thousands of years. However, if you recycle, it will be melted down into large sheets and reused again. This can be done over and over and over again.

Check out this video on the life of a soda can! It is totally awesome!

Now, that's a pretty cool life!!!  

"Don't throw away your soda cans.  Recycle them with KIDS CAN."

REDUCE. RECYCLE. REUSE.  Help the planet. Help someone in need, too.

   

Peace,

Emily

P.S. Don't forget to drop a comment below or email me to receive the latest information and updates.  Thanks!

HI, IT'S A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU!

EMILY
Creator & Author of KIDS CAN site

 Hi there!    My name is Emily.  I am 10 years old and the creator & author of this blog.        

 

My mom went on a mission trip to Haiti after Christmas in 2009.  When she returned, she showed my brother and me pictures of the children there.  As she talked about the things that the children needed, I had a big desire to do something to help them.  But since I was only in the first grade, I didn’t know what I could do.  I was sad.

 

Children outside of school in Haiti

 

I then said to my mom, “Since kids don’t have jobs or money to send, how can we help?”

After talking for several minutes, we decided that kids could collect cans, recycle them and then send the money to Haiti to help them build more schools, buy books and classroom materials for the children! 

We decided on the name KIDS CAN because of the aluminum cans recycling, but it really means so much more.  KIDS CAN makes a difference by helping the environment AND helping those in need. 

And that’s the story of how KIDS CAN was born. 

Now, with the help and direction of my parents, I will manage this blog and volunteer time in service to this program with my brother.  We will do this as a program of Green Heart, Inc., a non-profit company dedicated to educating others on caring for our environment. 

We have fundraising and volunteer events planned for kids (and their parents) to become a part of KIDS CAN.  Send us an email so we can keep you updated on what’s going on.

 

I hope that you enjoy the information you find here and I also hope that you will share your thoughts, ideas and comments with us.  I’m really excited and I hope that you are excited about making our world a healthier, cleaner and better place to live.

Remember - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

Peace,

Emily