I started to be more conscious about the "Reuse, Reduce and Recycle " concept when my older son was 4 years old and learned about the subject in the Montessori School he was attending. Of course, I was recycling everything possible and pushing to use things until these could no more, but somehow because he was conscious about the matter, I couldn't be blind to the fact that we produced so much waste daily. My husband and I became more actively conscious and stopped purchasing plastic whenever possible, especially those hundreds of water bottles that we used to drink monthly. Perhaps our contribution is not too much for the World but if each one of us makes a small change in habits, we will for sure make a difference.
Here is something you can do at home that will teach your kids to reuse and recycle. It is a fun activity and a STEM experiment at the same time that my kids and I did some weeks ago.
During quarantine, one day, I saw a post on my friend's Instagram which I found so interesting, and we decided to give it a try. I always thought about how crayons go to waste so fast because children break them and then want to paint with a brand new one that is long enough to hold it properly. So this idea came up so handy: Reuse and Recycle all those small crayons that you might have all over your house. Doesn't this sound fun? If so, grab them together, get an oven muffin pan, and follow the steps below:
- Turn on the oven at 350 ºF
- Remove the wrapping paper from each crayon (I am sure children in your house will be thrilled to do this, mine for some reason are!)
- Divide the crayons into groups of one same color (similar shades of the same color can go together)
- Place each bunch of crayons of the same color in a different muffin mold
- Put the muffin pan inside the oven so the crayons can melt (the over will be hot by now, so please don't allow children to do this step)
- It will take around 10 minutes to melt
- Carefully take the pan from the oven (the liquid crayons will be very hot so please don't allow children to do this step either)
- Allow the pan to totally cool down. When it is cold, the liquid will have to solidify, and then is when you will be able to remove the crayon muffins
- Now children can start coloring with their new crayons shaped like a flat muffin
My kids love their "new" crayons and I love that they cannot crack them in half. Hope you all enjoy this activity!!
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