Creative afternoons:Zero waste

Children are one of the main sources of non-recyclable waste brought into the home. And it is logical, our children live in a plastic universe. You can do things:buy sustainable, second-hand and resell, rent in toy libraries or even use materials found in nature to make games.

Contents 1 3 zero waste activities to do with materials found in nature 2 MIKADO with branches and sticks. 3 Imaginary animals with branches, leaves and shells. 4 DOMINO game with pebbles, leaves, shells or chestnuts 5 And other zero waste activities to adopt:

3 zero waste activities to do with materials found in nature

Have fun with your children creating pretty games and curious objects with materials that you will collect outside! Nature is everywhere! Explore your garden, walk in the parks, on the beach, watch for surprises at the foot of the trees. Today, I'm going to show you 3 activities to do with your children.

MIKADO with branches and sticks.

Do you already know the mikado game?

Gather the chopsticks in your hands, then drop them on a table or the floor. R2ctakes one of them without moving the others.

Repeat as long as you succeed. At the end of the game, the player who collected the most wands wins!

What you need:

• Thin, straight branches
• A pruner (used by an adult)
• Gouache
• Brushes

1. Pick up branches and remove twigs along the main stem. Cut sticks of approximately the same length. You can break them by hand or use the shears.
2. Paint patterns along the entire length of the wands as you wish.
3. Decorate enough to make up the game

And There you go ! You can spend the whole afternoon playing Mikado with your family!

Imaginary animals with branches, leaves and shells.

What did you pick up in the wild? Seashells look like a face? Tree branches remind you of antennas? Could the leaf stalks be used to create a centipede? Let your children's imagination run wild!

What you need:

• Sticks, twigs, and a leaf
• Colored paper
• Glue
• Wobbling eyes (or paper stickers)
• Scissors and secateurs

1. Gather branches, two twigs, and a leaf. Cut large branches of several different sizes to make small sticks (about twenty). Also cut 4 slices in one of the branches (with a pruner)
2. Assemble the sticks to create the animal's body, the twigs to make the antennae and the leaf for the tail
3. Cut a head shape out of colored paper and glue the wiggly eyes on it. Adjust the position of each element so that your animal is built as you wish

But what is this animal? Ask your child to come up with a fun name for their creation.

DOMINO game with pebbles, leaves, shells or chestnuts

Collect pretty flat pebbles, pick up seashells on the beach, leaves, chestnuts or chestnuts and create your own dominoes game!

What you need:

• Pebbles
• Gouache
• Brushes

1. Choose two pebbles. Paint the same pattern on half of the first and half of the second pebble. You can apply two layers of gouache, so that the colors are very vivid.
2. Keep painting the pebbles, half by half, inventing new patterns. Vary the shapes and colors!
3. For your dominoes game to be complete, paint about twenty additional pebbles, repeating each pattern twice

To play, distribute painted pebbles to the players. Everyone lays down a domino in turn, matching the patterns to form the longest chain possible!

And more zero waste activities to adopt:

• Mom Happiness and its canned decoration
• Recréamam and his ideas for games with milk bottles, corks and toilet paper
• Maloli-Rose Family and her mini skirt transformed into a bag, without forgetting
• Giselleanton gives clothes a second life
• Chezlorette with two decoration ideas and how to flavor your white vinegar
• Zéph's Cabin highlights the now famous tawashi plus two other activities creative.