Teaching our children to recycle is often more difficult than it sounds. We can tell our children about the benefits of going green or how being irresponsible with our waste can cause problems for animals and the environment but they will rarely connect with such enormously abstract ideas. What is positive, is that schools across London are telling pupils all about keeping the house clear and organising waste.

It was said that the best way to teach a child is through activity. At home, we can employ different practices that will encourage a greener generation. We can each do our bit to integrate recycling into our child’s life. Here are Clearance Team’s top five ways for London parents to teach our little Londoners about waste:

1. Coloured Bins

Our children are unlikely to be interacting with our big outdoor bins, but we can encourage them to separate waste by gathering indoor bins of different colours. One for cans, one for general waste, one for paper. This creates a good incentive for organising waste through simple association.

2. Recyclable Products

As we would teach our child to identify different products, we can also teach them to identify various properties and packaging materials. Encouraging our child to learn these things is not just environmentally advantageous but great to keep their little minds occupied.

3. Composting

If you have enough space in the garden, a great way to show kids food recycling is by composting. You can show your children how the process works, they can help you toss old apple cores, banana skins or potato peels onto the pile. It’s a great interactive method of recycling. Compost piles often attract wildlife – which allows you to show the direct connection between the environment and recycling.

4. The Recycling Centre

Next time you visit the recycling centre, bring your child with you. From the car, show them all the various ways that waste is divided and processed. It may also be a great idea to write a letter to your local school about taking the class there for the day. A council guide may help explain, in a child-friendly way, how different items can effect the environment and city in different ways.

5. Reusing Toys

Next time you are getting rid of toys or clothes, bring your kid with you. Let them see how clothes can help others when donated to charity or toys can help other children a little less fortunate. This can encourage sharing but also move our children away from the ‘disposable’ mentality that has caused us problems.

Remember that our little Londoners are watching everything we do. They’ll carry on our habits in the large part, whether good or bad. We can empower the future generations by starting early.