Sustainability in the Early Years Foundation Stage does not need to involve complicated projects, expensive equipment or frightening conversations about climate change. For young children, sustainability begins with simple, positive experiences: caring for a plant, reusing a cardboard box, turning off a dripping tap, observing a minibeast and learning that the natural world deserves our care.
The most effective sustainable ideas for EYFS are practical, playful and closely connected to children’s everyday lives. By modelling thoughtful choices and giving children meaningful responsibilities, early years practitioners can help children develop habits that support both people and the planet.
This guide contains simple ways to introduce sustainability across your nursery, preschool, childminding provision or Reception classroom.
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What does sustainability mean in EYFS?
Sustainability means meeting our needs while protecting the resources, environments and communities that future generations will need.
For young children, this can be introduced through four simple ideas:
- Caring for ourselves
- Caring for other people
- Caring for living things
- Caring for the places and resources we share
Children do not need to understand complex environmental terminology. They need opportunities to experience what responsible care looks and feels like.
This might include watering plants, repairing a broken toy, reusing paper, putting litter in a bin, sharing materials, growing food or noticing changes in the weather.
The current EYFS statutory framework emphasises learning through play, adult modelling, observation and adult-guided experiences. Sustainability can therefore be woven naturally through the educational programmes rather than taught as a separate subject.
Why is sustainability important in early years?
Early childhood is when many lifelong attitudes and habits begin to develop. When sustainable practice becomes a normal part of daily provision, children learn that looking after their environment is simply something people do.
Sustainable EYFS practice can help children:
- Develop respect for living things
- Understand where food and materials come from
- Become responsible and independent
- Appreciate and protect their local environment
- Develop empathy for people, animals and nature
- Learn how to reuse, repair and reduce waste
- Build confidence through meaningful responsibilities
- Strengthen their connection with the natural world
These experiences can also support communication, physical development, problem-solving, cooperation and emotional wellbeing.
How does sustainability link to the EYFS?
Sustainability can support learning across all seven areas of the EYFS. For more ideas ,head to the Outdoors EYFS Hub.
Communication and Language
Children can learn and use words such as reuse, repair, recycle, compost, protect, habitat and harvest. Practitioners can encourage discussion by asking open questions:
“What could we use this box for?”
“How can we look after this plant?”
“What do you think will happen to the ice?”
“Where do you think our food comes from?”
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Sharing resources, caring for plants, feeding birds and completing environmental jobs can help children develop responsibility, cooperation and empathy.
Sustainability is also about caring for communities. Children can learn that their choices affect other people and that everyone can contribute.
Physical Development
Digging, planting, sweeping, carrying watering cans, collecting natural materials and using recycled construction resources all support gross and fine motor development.
Literacy
Use books, signs, labels and storytelling to explore nature, seasonal changes, growing, wildlife and looking after the planet. Children might create signs for a recycling station, record the growth of a sunflower or make a book about their outdoor space.
Mathematics
Sorting recycling, comparing sticks, counting seeds, measuring rainfall and sharing harvested produce provide meaningful mathematical experiences.
Understanding the World
This area provides particularly strong opportunities for sustainability. Children can observe plants and animals, investigate materials, notice seasonal change and begin to understand how human actions affect the natural world.
Expressive Arts and Design
Reclaimed materials, cardboard, fabric remnants and natural objects can become open-ended creative resources. Unlike prescriptive craft kits, these materials encourage children to design, experiment and solve problems.
Sustainable ideas for EYFS settings
1. Create a reuse station
Provide a carefully selected collection of clean reusable materials such as cardboard tubes, small boxes, ribbon, fabric pieces, paper offcuts, bottle tops and packaging.
Children can use these materials for model-making, transient art, role play and construction.
Avoid filling the area with too many resources. A smaller, well-organised collection is more inviting and helps children see the possibilities within each material.
Always assess reclaimed materials carefully. Do not use items with sharp edges, unsuitable contents, choking risks or unclear origins.
2. Introduce loose parts play
Loose parts are open-ended objects that children can move, combine, arrange, transport and redesign.
Sustainable loose parts might include:
- Wooden curtain rings
- Cardboard tubes
- Corks
- Fabric pieces
- Pegs
- Shells
- Pinecones
- Smooth stones
- Sticks
- Cable reels
- Crates
- Guttering
- Tyres
One collection of loose parts can support construction, mathematics, storytelling, imaginative play, physical development and investigation. This reduces the need to purchase a separate plastic resource for every learning objective.
3. Grow something children can eat
Children can grow herbs, salad leaves, peas, beans, tomatoes or strawberries. Even settings with limited outdoor space can use window boxes, pots, recycled containers or hanging planters.
Involve children in the complete process:
- Prepare the soil.
- Plant the seeds.
- Water and care for the plants.
- Observe and record growth.
- Harvest the produce.
- Wash, prepare and taste it.
Growing food helps children understand where food comes from and why soil, water, insects and weather are important.
4. Start a simple compost system
Collect suitable fruit and vegetable scraps from snack time and add them to a compost bin. Children can help identify what can and cannot be composted.
Use the finished compost in pots or growing areas so children can observe the whole cycle from food waste to healthy soil.
Check your setting’s food hygiene, allergen and waste procedures before introducing food-based activities.
5. Set up an EYFS recycling station
Create clearly labelled containers for the materials your setting can recycle. Use photographs or real examples so children can identify the correct container independently.
Instead of completing a one-off recycling activity, make sorting waste part of the daily routine. Adults should model their thinking aloud:
“This paper has been used on both sides. Now it can go into our recycling container.”
6. Make water conservation visible
Invite children to help check that taps are turned off properly. Collect rainwater in a suitable covered water butt and use it for watering plants.
Talk about why plants, animals and people need clean water. Avoid presenting water conservation as a set of frightening rules; focus on the positive idea that water is precious and should be used carefully.
Standing water must always be stored and managed safely, with appropriate supervision and risk assessment.
7. Reduce single-use resources
Look at the materials your setting regularly throws away. Could some be replaced with washable, refillable or reusable alternatives?
Possibilities include:
- Refillable paint pots
- Washable painting cloths
- Reusable table coverings
- Refillable glue containers
- Fabric role-play resources
- Reusable snack containers
- Laminated resources only when they will genuinely be used repeatedly
Reducing waste does not mean removing valuable creative experiences. It means thinking carefully about what is used, how often it is used and what happens to it afterwards.
8. Use natural materials for creative play
Leaves, sticks, stones, petals and seed heads can be used for observational drawing, pattern-making, counting, printing and transient art.
Collect natural materials responsibly. Take only small amounts of abundant materials, avoid picking protected plants and leave habitats undisturbed.
9. Repair before replacing
Create a safe “repair workshop” where children can help mend books, tape boxes or identify toys that need attention.
Adults can model the idea that a damaged object is not always rubbish. This supports problem-solving and encourages children to value the resources they use.
Electrical items and equipment requiring specialist repair must remain the responsibility of an appropriate adult or professional.
10. Explore seasonal change
Return to the same tree, plant or part of the outdoor area throughout the year. Take photographs, make drawings and discuss what children notice.
Seasonal learning helps children develop an authentic connection with nature. They begin to understand that the environment is constantly changing and that different living things need different conditions.
11. Support local wildlife
Simple wildlife-friendly ideas include:
- Planting pollinator-friendly flowers
- Creating a small log pile
- Adding a shallow, safely managed water source
- Making bird feeders
- Growing herbs and native plants
- Leaving a small area less disturbed
- Creating minibeast shelters
Wildlife features must be included within your normal safety, supervision and hygiene procedures. Children should learn to observe living things gently rather than capture or disturb them unnecessarily.
12. Introduce sustainable role play
Sustainability can become part of children’s imaginative play.
Create a repair café, garden centre, community shop, recycling centre, second-hand shop or vegetable market. Use real reusable objects and open-ended materials rather than purchasing themed plastic sets.
Children can sort, count, label, exchange, repair and design as part of their play.
13. Use both sides of paper
Place paper that has been used on only one side in a drawing or message-making area. Children can also use scraps for collage, lists, maps and labels.
This is a small change, but it provides a clear and manageable example of using a resource carefully.
14. Organise a toy or book swap
Invite families to exchange good-quality toys, dressing-up clothes or books that their children have outgrown.
This introduces the idea that objects can have more than one owner and remain useful for a long time. It can also support families while reducing unnecessary purchasing.
15. Take learning outdoors
Outdoor learning does not require large amounts of specialist equipment. Chalk, rope, sticks, stones, crates and natural features can support learning across the EYFS.
Regular time outdoors helps children develop familiarity with weather, plants, animals and seasonal change. Children are more likely to care about nature when they have meaningful opportunities to experience it.
Sustainable activities for EYFS
Here are some simple activities that can be adapted for nursery, preschool and Reception children.
Recycled construction challenge
Offer boxes, tubes, card and masking tape. Invite children to create something useful, such as a home for a toy, a vehicle, a bridge or a container.
Nature colour hunt
Choose a colour and search the outdoor environment for natural objects containing similar shades. Observe objects without picking everything you find.
Seed investigation
Provide a selection of fruit and vegetable seeds. Compare their shape, size, colour and texture before planting some of them.
Litter-picking walk
Use child-safe equipment and close adult supervision to collect appropriate litter from your grounds. Adults must remove hazardous, sharp or unhygienic items.
Rainwater experiment
Place containers in suitable outdoor positions and compare how much rain they collect. Use the water on plants afterwards.
Cardboard-box role play
Allow a large box to become whatever the children imagine. It might become a boat, bus, den, shop, spaceship or animal home.
Natural pattern-making
Use leaves, stones, sticks and pinecones to create repeating patterns, spirals, pictures or shapes.
Food journey investigation
Choose a familiar food and explore where it comes from, how it grows and how it reaches the setting.
Make recycled paper
Soak scraps of uncoated paper, turn them into pulp with adult support and press the pulp into new sheets. Follow suitable hygiene and equipment safety procedures.
Build a minibeast shelter
Use sticks, dry leaves, pinecones and hollow stems to create small spaces where insects may shelter. Position it somewhere quiet and observe it without repeatedly moving the materials.
Sustainable EYFS ideas for small spaces
A lack of outdoor space does not prevent a setting from developing sustainable practice.
Small-space ideas include:
- Growing herbs on a windowsill
- Planting vertically
- Using a small wormery or suitable compost system
- Creating a reuse trolley
- Observing weather from a window
- Growing mushrooms from an appropriate kit
- Borrowing books from a local library
- Visiting a park or community garden
- Creating a portable loose-parts collection
- Growing salad leaves in shallow containers
Sustainability should reflect the reality of your setting. Begin with manageable changes that can become part of everyday practice.
How to create a more sustainable EYFS environment
Before buying new “eco” products, look at what your setting already owns.
Ask:
- Can we use this more effectively?
- Can it be repaired?
- Can it be shared between rooms?
- Can we borrow instead of buying?
- Is there a reusable alternative?
- Will this resource support many types of play?
- How long is it likely to last?
- What will happen to it when we no longer need it?
Buying large quantities of new resources marketed as sustainable can still create unnecessary consumption. Often, the most sustainable resource is the one already in your cupboard.
Choose quality, durability and open-ended potential over quantity.
How can adults model sustainability?
Young children notice what adults repeatedly do.
Practitioners can model sustainable thinking by saying:
“Let’s see if we can repair this.”
“We already have something we can use.”
“This plant needs water, so we’re going to care for it.”
“We only need a small amount of paint.”
“Let’s put this somewhere safe so we can use it again.”
“Can we borrow one instead of buying another?”
These short conversations help children understand the reasons behind sustainable choices.
Working with parents and families
Sustainable practice is most effective when it feels inclusive rather than judgemental.
Families have different financial circumstances, housing arrangements, cultural experiences and access to outdoor spaces. Avoid suggesting that sustainability depends on buying expensive products or making perfect lifestyle choices.
Settings can involve families by:
- Requesting specific reusable materials
- Holding book and clothing swaps
- Sharing low-cost outdoor activity ideas
- Inviting family members to share gardening or repair skills
- Providing seeds for families to grow
- Celebrating walking, cycling and public transport where these are realistic
- Sharing children’s sustainability projects
- Signposting local libraries, parks and community gardens
Be clear about what you need. A request for “junk modelling” can result in unsafe or unmanageable donations, whereas a request for “clean cereal boxes and cardboard tubes needed by Friday” is much easier for families to follow.
Sustainability and climate change in EYFS
Young children do not need to carry the emotional burden of solving climate change.
Avoid overwhelming images, frightening predictions or language that suggests the world is ending. Early sustainability education should build hope, connection and agency.
Focus on what children can see and do:
- Plants grow when we care for them.
- Animals need suitable habitats.
- Materials can be reused.
- Water should not be wasted.
- People can work together.
- Our local spaces belong to everyone.
The goal is not to create anxiety. It is to help children see themselves as capable and caring members of their community.
A simple sustainability action plan for EYFS settings
Begin by choosing one realistic action in each area.
Resources
Introduce a reuse station and review one frequently purchased disposable item.
Outdoor environment
Grow one edible plant or create one small wildlife-friendly feature.
Daily routines
Give children responsibility for recycling, watering or checking resources are stored for reuse.
Curriculum
Plan one sustainability-related book, investigation or project each half-term.
Families
Introduce a swap, donation request or shared growing activity.
Leadership
Review purchasing, waste, energy use and staff responsibilities. Make sure changes are realistic enough to continue throughout the year.
Sustainability is built through consistent everyday decisions, not occasional themed weeks.
Frequently asked questions about sustainability in EYFS
Is sustainability part of the EYFS curriculum?
Sustainability is not presented as a separate statutory area of learning, but it can be meaningfully embedded across all seven areas. It has particularly clear connections with Understanding the World, Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication and Language, and Expressive Arts and Design.
How do you explain sustainability to young children?
Use simple language connected to familiar experiences. You might say, “Sustainability means looking after people, places and things so there is enough for everyone now and in the future.”
For younger children, “We look after our world and the things we share” may be enough.
What are some examples of sustainability in a nursery?
Examples include growing food, composting suitable waste, using both sides of paper, repairing toys, collecting rainwater, using loose parts, reducing single-use materials and caring for local wildlife.
Do sustainable activities need to be adult-led?
No. Some direct teaching will be helpful, but sustainability should also be reflected in continuous provision, routines and child-led play. A child independently reusing a box or remembering to water a plant is applying sustainable thinking.
Are recycled materials always safe for EYFS children?
No. Every item must be checked for cleanliness, sharp edges, allergens, choking risks and suitability for the age and needs of the children. Risk assessment and appropriate supervision remain essential.
How can we make our EYFS provision sustainable on a small budget?
Start by using existing resources more effectively. Repair, borrow, rotate and reuse before buying more. Cardboard, fabric, household containers and responsibly collected natural objects can provide rich play opportunities at little cost.
What is the best sustainable activity for EYFS?
Growing something children can eat is an excellent starting point because it combines responsibility, observation, communication, physical development and understanding of the natural world. However, the best activity is one that can become a genuine, repeated part of your provision.
Start small and make sustainability meaningful
Sustainable early years practice is not about perfection. It is about helping children experience care, responsibility and respect through everyday play and routines.
Begin with one achievable change. Plant a seed, repair a book, reuse a box or give children responsibility for looking after a shared space. When these experiences are repeated, sustainability becomes part of your setting’s culture rather than an occasional topic.
At The Muddy Puddle Teacher, we believe children learn best through practical, active and meaningful experiences. Explore our sustainable EYFS resources, outdoor learning ideas and training to discover simple ways to teach more of the curriculum using nature, movement and the resources you already have.
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