ISTANBUL, June 2 (Xinhua) -- In a classroom at an Istanbul kindergarten, a dozen children avidly brushed ice cubes with colorful watercolors, trying to melt the ice with brushstrokes and save the endangered animals hidden inside.
It was one of the many activities being held at Istanbul Municipality's kindergarten Yuvam Istanbul to mark the upcoming World Environment Day on June 5.
According to kindergarten supervisor Ozlem Aydin, the numerous indoor and outdoor activities contribute significantly to increasing children's environmental awareness and encouraging kids to take action to protect the environment.
"We have to keep everything very clean, not only for ourselves but also for other animals living in deserts and near the Poles," six-year-old Gabriella Cizmecioglu told Xinhua.
Cizmecioglu said she learned from her teachers that forests, trees, and seas are the most precious things for humanity and people have to take good care of them.
"Instead of throwing garbage into the sea, we have to throw it into a trash can. Because, otherwise, sea creatures will die," she said.
The kid also explained how to brush teeth without consuming much water.
"You do not need to keep the water running after wetting the brush. You open the water to rinse your mouth and turn it off again," she said.
Ahmet Eray Karakas, another six-year-old kid, believes that Mother Nature has fallen sick due to environmental problems.
"I would like to say sorry to her," Karakas said, adding that he thinks that the sun warmed her too much and made her sick. "I love nature forever and ever because we only have one earth."
In another classroom, the kids drew pictures about nature and pasted them on a giant image of the earth, which was depicted as devastated due to climate change. As the students paste their pictures, the earth was coming to life again.
Hudanur Yurek, a student, drew a tree that will provide the required "oxygen level and make the earth green again."
"Dear Mother Earth, I love you," she said while installing her picture among the drawings of other kids, which included animals of all kinds, flowers and plants.
After finishing their activities, the children in the classrooms chanted all together "We have just one earth."
Such activities are going on at full pace in the municipality's 32 kindergartens across the city to encourage awareness and action for the protection of the environment, according to local officials. ■