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12 eco-friendly, no-candy classroom valentines for kids. Help your children give out fun earth friendlyvalentinesthat are sure tobe a big hit withtheir classmates!! Click through for the best DIY Valentine’s Day cards to make with kids.
12 Eco-Friendly Valentines for Earth Loving Families
✅ These blooming seed hearts are our number one choice
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- I love these little hearts made from biodegradable seed paper. The paper grows into flowers when planted! How cool is that?
These are 1.8 X 2 inches, so they are not very big. If you want something larger, there are other shapes and sizes. Choose one that suits.
It would be a little weird to give a random heart with no instructions, so I’ve created a cute FREE printable for you to use. You’ll find it in the library. Click here for access.
Instructions
- Downloadand print the image.Any paper will work, but Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)certified card stockwould be ideal. There are four valentines on each page, so print as many copies as you need to cover the class list.
- Cutalong the guidelines
- Gluethe seed heart over the small burgundy/teal heart.
- Optional:Have your child write a classmate’s name on the back of each valentine.
Make Your Own Seed Paper
If you prefer to make your own seed paper hearts you can find some instructions here. It really is the ultimate eco-friendly gift as it makes new paper from old.
Why Eco Friendly Valentines?
Do you cringe when your kids bring home the class lists for Valentine’s Day? I always did! Don’t get me wrong. I love that we have a day set aside where we celebrate love and friendship. But I didn’t like those classroom valentines. Every year it was the same. Three school bags stuffed with random valentine cards, candy, and trinkets.
It was the waste that got to me. All those valuable resources held for a few moments and then tossed into the landfill. And a quick trip into any store shows me things haven’t changed. I still see aisles of Valentine’s Day stuff mostof whichcan’t be recycled. I felt sure that with a little time I couldfind some classroom eco-friendly valentines that are earth friendly.
So fired up with enthusiasm I went looking for ideas! I discovered that it was far harder than I thought. It has taken me many hours of searching. Still I figured it was worth it, so I persevered and here are the best ideas I could find.
Related: 8 Acts of Kindness For Valentine’s Day
Bird Seed hearts
Kids who likecooking will enjoymaking these bird seed hearts.
Bonus: They are gifts for both friends AND birds! They are pretty simple to make and are peanut free.
Hint: Use a biodegradable twine to hang the hearts. This can be composted once the birds have enjoyed their treat.
If you need a silicon heart shaped mold you can find one here.
Eco- Friendly Valentines That Use Recycled Materials
You Rock Valentines
Raid your recycle bin and rock collection to make these cute “You Rock ” Valentines. Seriously, aren’t they adorable?
Heart Shape Recycled Crayons
You’ll probably have to supervise carefully with this one. After all we are talking liquid wax inside your oven! Still it’s a great way to recycle all those broken crayons that you’ve got lying around. Find the instructions here. Zero waste!
Newspaper and Paint Hearts
Newspaper and paint hearts are a great way to recycle some newspaper. Aren’t they pretty?
Recycled Cardboard Hearts
Take a look at these beautiful CardboardHearts. They are actually decorations, but they would make gorgeous (and unique) Valentines. You will need to raid your recycling stash for these.
Cardboard Tube Gift Boxes
Save your toilet paper tubes and make these adorable gift boxes. Aren’t they cute? Fill them small bags of seeds, blooming seed hearts or organic jelly beans
Collage Hearts
Gather together all your scraps and pieces to make these fabulous collage hearts. Then use them to make your valentines.
Decorated brown paper bags
Painted newspaper hearts and brown paper bags make lovely classroom valentines. These could hold the bird seed or crayon hearts shown above. Alternatively, fill them small bags of seeds, blooming seed hearts or organic jelly beans. or popping corn.
Printable (and yet still Eco-Friendly) Valentines
At first glance printable Valentines do not seem that eco-friendly. However, paper can be recycled and composted. No transportation is required and nothing needs to be delivered. Store bought Valentines also come with extra packaging and sometimes plastic wrap. All of these can be printed at home on recycled paper.
Bonus:None of these printable valentines use candy, so they will work even if your kid’s classroom has a no sugar rule.
Autofill Classroom Valentines
I’ve created two sets of autofill classroom valentines for busy parents. THe PDf comes with a table, simply open the document in Adobe. Type the names into the table and they will automatically fill in the cards. You can do 12 cards at a time. Print, click on the clear button and type in the next 12 names.
We have two themes dinosaurs and trains.
Pencil Toppers
I liked these cute classroom valentinesfrom 30 Handmade Days. They are just right for school aged kids. Print, cut, and tape to a pencil.
Hint: Use recycled paperand tree friendly pencils to make this a truly earth friendly Valentine.
If you want to go one step further purchase pencils that can be planted when they have been worn down. (This totally fascinates me).
Sprout Wood-Cased Pencils | Pencils with Flower, Herb & Vegetable Seeds |
- The Sprout Original Edition contains a total of 8 eco-friendly, biodegradable and high-quality Sprout graphite pencils with decomposable cellulose seed-capsules for herbs, flowers or vegetables. This edition includes the following seed type: Sage, Thyme, Carnation, Chia, Coriander, Daisy, Forget me not and Basil.
Seed Packages
Kids love planting, so why not give them some seeds? All you need are a fewpackets of seedsand some envelopes. I loved these wonderfully corny seed envelopes from Arts and Crackers. Kids will enjoy these punny envelopes.How about reusing paper that has only been used on one side? The used side will be inside the seed packet.
Nearly Zero Waste Cutie
Print out a cute leaf tag and attach it to a cutie for a healthy Valentine treat. I love that the oranges are not wrapped in plastic and every part of this gift is edible or compostable.
Will a few eco-friendly valentines really make a difference?
After all we are only talking about a few classroom valentines.
I believe that every step towards a waste free life style is valuable. In the end we are doing it for our children right? We don’t want to leave them a planet that is damaged beyond repair.
The good thing is that it isn’t really hard to make changes. Focusing on small steps like eco friendly classroom valentinesis a great way to start.
Besides if you start sending out eco-friendly valentines maybe it will inspire other families to follow your example. Maybe you could start a trend. Imagine the impact if every child in the class did the same?
No more midnight garbage runs! That’s a win right?
Looking For More Valentine’s Day Fun?
Try these posts
- Valentine Bingo: A Fun Game For Families
- 12 Eco-Friendly Valentines For Kids to Make Today
- 33 Valentine’s Jokes To Make Kids Laugh
- Acts of Kindness For Valentine’s Day
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