There are many easy ways to help your children become active participants in your family’s green choices, from making recycling a game to participating in family environmental days. Just pick one or more of these simple steps to help your children become more environmentally aware.

Play the Recycling Game 
To get your kids recycling on a regular basis, turn it into a game. Have your kids write their names on their own recycling bin, and keep the bins in a convenient place. Give them goals to recycle as much as they can in a week — scratch paper from homework, juice boxes, water bottles and anything else you would normally recycle.

At the end of the week, compare their bins to see who “won” the recycling game. You can give out an Earth-friendly prize like seeds to plant in the garden to further encourage them. Then have them separate and empty the contents of their bins into the family recycling bins before trash day. Turning recycling into a game rather than a chore will go a long way toward making recycling a lifelong habit for your kids.

Assign Official Environmental Roles 
Another great way to inspire children’s enthusiastic participation in your family’s green practices is to give each child an official role. One child can be the family’s “Plastic Police” — responsible for carrying the reusable shopping bags when you go to the grocery store or run errands. You could also designate a child to be the “Compost Cop” — responsible for making sure food scraps go from the kitchen table to the compost pile, not the trash bin.

Family Time: Earth Duty Day 
Just as many families host a game night, you can have “Earth duty” days. As part of pitching in for your community, choose an activity that is environmentally friendly. Many towns hold cleanup days at local parks, beaches and wilderness areas. Many schools also hold volunteer days for beautification projects that they just don’t have the budget for, like sprucing up playgrounds. From cleaning up city streets to planting flowers, there are plenty of green projects your family can participate in. Just check with your local schools, community groups or city hall to see what green activities they need volunteers for, and sign your family up.

Budget Benefits 
While all of these ideas are great for the environment, conservation is also good for your budget. Making your children more mindful of green issues will encourage them to be more eco-conscious in their everyday lives. This will naturally spur them to make conservation choices on a daily basis, like remembering to turn off the lights when they leave a room or not grabbing two or three paper towels when just one will do the job. Small steps like these add up to less waste and can save your family money.

Raising your children to be environmentally aware by making a game out of recycling, assigning each child an “official” environmental role or volunteering for green activities together as a family will encourage them to live green their whole lives. And that is one of the best gifts you can give your children and the earth.