How to educate children about saving water

Education is the fundamental basis of progress. I'm not just talking about school education, which is basic, if not about home schooling. Teachers are there to teach children math, reading and writing, or world history. Parents have another role in the education of their children, as important or more important than the one they receive in school.

Just as you teach your children to respect older people, you must teach them to respect nature. Children must know the importance of not wasting the natural resources we have, because they are not infinite. Essentially they must know the importance of water in their lives and the need to save it.

For your child to understand why, you must first explain how important water is to him or her. Teach him that water is not only good for washing, or for drinking when he is thirsty. Water is necessary to water the plants that give us the oxygen we breathe. Tell your child that the only way to get drinking water is through the rain.

Therefore, when it rains we have to collect as much water as possible, to store it and use it whenever we need it. And since we cannot control when it rains, we have to know how we can save water.

Tricks to teach children to save water

• When brushing your teeth: To clean your teeth, you don't even have to turn on the tap. Just use a glass of water, with that they have to wet the brush a little before starting and enough water to rinse when they have finished. If you leave them a plastic cup next to their toothbrush, they will remember to use it.
• When washing the fruit: If at snack time they are going to have fruit, an apple for example. You already know that it is important to clean it well before eating it. Instead of putting it under the tap, fill a small bowl with water and put it somewhere that is accessible to them. This way they will learn to clean it while saving water.
• To water the plants: The same water that your little one used to clean the fruit will be used to water the plants. The same as if you reuse the water that is left over from the glasses after eating. Instead of throwing it away, store the remains in a bucket or watering can. When it's time to water the plants you can use it. Children love this activity so not only do you teach them how to save, you also teach them how to take care of the pots.
• Collecting rainwater: You have already taught him that the only drinking water we have is the one that falls when it rains, so why don't you teach him to collect water when this happens? You can use plastic buckets or any container that won't break. This water will be used for pets to drink, to water plants or to scrub the floor.

Not only must children be taught not to waste water, they must be shown that unfortunately other children do not even have it. Carefully and lovingly tell them that other children in the world do not have enough water. That in other countries it hardly rains and that they also do not have reservoirs to store all that rainwater. Children should be aware of their fortune.

The importance of creating social awareness in children

We have in our power to create awareness in children, teach them from an early age that they must care for and respect natural resources. As parents we have the obligation to educate our children in social conscience, that they know that water is necessary for their life, which has an environmental, social, even economic cost.

You can explain to your children that without water we cannot live, because all living beings need water. You can make him understand that, although the water comes from the rain, its consumption is not free.

And the most important of all, be an example for your children. You can do many activities with children to make them aware of the importance of caring for the environment, but the first thing you can do is set an example.