To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day on April 22, 2020, Discovery Education today announced it has made 50 engaging, educational, no-cost activities and events available to teachers, K-12 students, and families worldwide to participate in from their own homes. Found online at Discovery Education’s 50 Ways to Earth Day website, which can be found HERE, students and families will learn about actions they can take to help protect our planet as they virtually meet people and explore places around the globe, go on Virtual Field Trips, and learn about issues that impact us all. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.

In addition to the 50 activities, Discovery Education is hosting four special live events from our partners at Animal Planet, Polar Bears International, and Major League Baseball. The schedule for these events is as follows:

10:00am EST — You Can Protect the Animals with Animal Planet’s Forrest Galante

This event will be a world premiere of a special message and video from Animal Planet’s EXTINCT OR ALIVE host Forrest Galante, who will share with students what it’s like to be a wildlife biologist, why he’s so passionate about protecting animals, and some simple things they can do to make the world a better place for wildlife.

11:00am EST — A Live Earth Day Visit with Polar Bears (Elementary School Edition)

During this event, students will learn all about polar bears, including top ten facts, and some simple actions people can take to have a positive impact on our planet.  Then, participants will meet a polar bear cub.

1:00pm EST — MLB Green Goes Live!

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Brent Suter will participate in an engaging LIVE Twitter Chat on @DiscoveryEducation to discuss his passion for sustainability and reinforce the importance of caring for the environment. Suter graduated from Harvard University with a dual Environmental Science and Public Policy degree in 2012.

2:00pm EST — A Live Earth Day Visit with Polar Bears (Secondary School Edition):

Participating secondary school students will dive into the world of polar bears and learn how to help protect habitats. Attendees will then discover some little known facts about polar bears and visit a polar bear cub.

Discovery Education’s 50 Ways to Earth Day assets are drawn from content partners like Discovery Channel, Major League Baseball, Polar Bears International, National Science Foundation, and the World Wildlife Fund.  This content is standards-aligned and has been paired with 50 standalone activities for teachers, families and students to mark the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day.

Those resources include:

Creating a Water Recycling Game Plan

The Minnesota Twins want to be the “greenest ballpark in America!” and water conservation is part of their game plan. Participants in this activity will watch the “MLB Global Sustainability Challenge” video to learn how the Twins’ rainwater reuse program has helped them reuse more than 19 million gallons of water, and then work with their team at home to come up with a game plan for using less water or collecting and recycling rainwater.

The “No Straw” Challenge

Participants in this activity will watch an excerpt from the Straws documentary and meet 11-year-old Max who created a “No Straw Challenge.” They will then be challenged to come up with their own way to reduce the use of single-use plastics in their family or community, and reduce the billions of non-recyclable plastic straws that litter our streets and wash into the ocean.

Exploring the History of Earth Day

Participants in this activity will learn who actually started Earth Day and how many countries now celebrate it by watching Celebrate with DE: Earth Day. Through this video, students will explore the history of this holiday, discover how different countries inspire environmental activism, and take on a challenge to design a project that honors our planet and inspires others to do the same.

In addition to these resources, Discovery Education’s corporate and community partners are providing additional resources to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Covering topics from sustainability to the future of cities, these engaging resources present students and families with high quality, no-cost content that explores some of the most important topics of our time through engaging media. Visit this link to learn more.

These events and activities will also be available within Discovery Education Experience on a specially curated 50 Ways to Earth Day Channel. 

To see the entire list of no-cost Earth Day events and activities, visit Discovery Education’s 50 Ways to Earth Day website HERE.