Edition 5 | How AI Can Help Educators Embed Sustainability in ECE...
Jodie Clarke
AI-Empowered Early Childhood Education Consultant | Helping ECE Leaders & Educators Use Ethical, Innovative AI Strategies To Improve Planning & Playful Learning
What Does It Mean to ‘Embed Sustainable Practise’?
Sustainability in early childhood education is more than just recycling bins and Earth Day activities. True embedded sustainable practice means that eco-conscious values, habits, and routines become woven into the fabric of daily experiences, rather than being treated as separate lessons or add-on activities.
For many educators though, I know that ‘embedding sustainability’ can feel like yet one more thing on the to-do list - especially when you’re already juggling program planning, documentation, and compliance. But sustainability doesn't have to be complicated. In fact, some of the most effective sustainable practices come from small, intentional actions that are incorporated into your everyday play, routines, and interactions with children.
When sustainability is truly embedded in an early learning environment, it becomes invisible yet ever-present – woven into daily experiences rather than existing as separate "eco-activities."
The difference is subtle but profound:
Traditional Approach: "Today we're doing our sustainability activity – we're making recycled paper!"
Embedded Approach: "What could we create with these paper scraps instead of putting them in the bin?"
The first approach treats sustainability as a special event. The second embeds sustainable thinking into everyday problem-solving and creativity. Both have value, but it's the embedded approach that cultivates lasting habits and dispositions.
True embedded sustainability looks like:
? Child-led sustainability choices: Encouraging children to decide what to plant in the garden, how to reuse materials, or which projects they'd like to work on.
? Daily eco-conscious routines: Turning off lights, saving water, composting food scraps, and reusing materials naturally as part of the day.
? Play-based sustainability learning: Engaging in upcycled art, nature walks, loose parts play, and small-world play using natural materials.
? Family & community involvement: Encouraging families to participate in sustainability initiatives, such as reducing waste in lunchboxes, collecting recyclables for crafts, or joining community clean-up efforts.
? Educator role modeling: Demonstrating respect for the environment through actions and discussions, showing children that sustainability is part of everyday life, not just a special event.
Rather than seeing sustainability as a principle or outcome to be taught, embedding it means making it a lived experience…one that children absorb through observation, participation, and meaningful engagement.
So please keep in mind that while embedding sustainability is essential for quality early learning and meeting framework requirements here in Australia, it doesn't need to become another ‘task’ you need to check off the to do list. And this is where AI tools can become a valuable ally; helping you create new ideas, document learning moments more effectively, and communicate quickly with families about sustainability initiatives - all without adding hours of extra planning time to your week.?
Why AI Supports Embedding Sustainable Practice…
Sustainability is no longer just an “add-on” in early childhood education, it’s an essential part of our quality practice. It aligns with frameworks like the EYLF (Outcome 2) and NQS (Quality Area 3), helping children build respect for the environment and develop lifelong eco-friendly habits.
But realistically, there are a number of challenges to achieving this with ease:
?? Many educators want to embed sustainability but feel overwhelmed
? Sustainability planning takes time, and documentation adds to the workload
? Activities often feel repetitive or difficult to tailor for different settings
?? This is where an AI Assistant can help!
Artificial intelligence can be a collaborative thinking partner, helping you:
? Brainstorm new sustainability activity ideas instantly
? Save time on planning & documentation
? Create family engagement strategies personalised to family culture
? Encourage child-led sustainability projects
Instead of adding more to your plate, AI can help you work smarter (if you learn how to use it effectively) so sustainability becomes a natural part of play-based learning. More on the HOW shortly!
?? What We’ll Explore in This Edition:
I’ll break the concept of embedding sustainability down into simple, actionable steps that work for any early learning setting. Here’s what you’ll find out:
?? Simple Steps: How to use AI to brainstorm sustainability activities, document learning, and streamline eco-friendly initiatives.
?? Prompting Practice: AI prompts you can use to personalise sustainability strategies based on your children’s interests, resources, and centre needs.
?? Reflect & Grow: Questions to help you evaluate and improve sustainability practices in your setting.
?? Listen & Learn: Highlights from my latest podcast episode, where I break down practical AI-powered sustainability strategies for educators.
So let's explore how AI can shift your current approach to sustainability and in the process, make embedding sustainability easier, more engaging, and a core part of children’s role as active learners?
AI-Empowered Strategies for Sustainability?
Embedding sustainability simply means finding ways to naturally integrate eco-friendly practices into everyday learning and AI can make this easier for you now …try these simple strategies to test it out for yourself:?
1?? Get Instant Sustainability Play Ideas
One of the biggest challenges educators often face is coming up with new, engaging sustainability activities. We often fall back on the same ideas repeatedly…gardening, recycling, or nature walks, because, frankly, we don't always have the time or energy to think of new, creative, play-based experiences that fit our setting and children’s interests.
Instead of spending hours scrolling through Pinterest or trying to force creativity at the end of a long day, AI can provide customised sustainability activity ideas in seconds!
?? Try This:?
?? Open an AI chat tool like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or my Empowered Ed AI Assistants
?? Type: "Suggest 5 sustainability play-based activities for [age group] using only recycled and natural materials."?
?? Modify the ideas to fit your setting and children's interests
?? Why This Works: AI eliminates the brainstorming stress, giving you a starting point that you can adjust based on your professional knowledge, the children's interests, and available resources.
?? Empowered Ed Tip: If an AI-generated idea isn't quite right, ask follow-up questions like "Can you simplify this for toddlers?" or "Give me a messy play version of this activity." The more details you provide, the better the suggestions will be!
2?? AI for Faster Learning Stories & Observations
Sustainability learning moments happen naturally throughout the day - children sorting recyclables, planting seeds, or engaging in loose parts play. But finding time to document these experiences in a way that meets requirements and is meaningful to families can be draining.
Writing learning stories from scratch can feel daunting to many educators, especially when you're trying to capture multiple experiences in a busy setting. The AI assistant can help you format your notes, expand on core observations, and even link the experience to EYLF outcomes (and explain WHY they connect!) without losing your authentic educator voice.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Write a learning story for [age group] about a sustainability experience where children explored nature play using recycled materials. Link to EYLF Outcome 2, explain why you made that connection and write in an engaging, parent-friendly tone."
?? Why This Works: AI doesn't replace your expertise - it just helps structure and write your reflections, making it easier to turn your observations into an engaging learning story.
?? Empowered Ed Tip: Always personalise the AI-generated story by adding real quotes from children, your own reflections, and photos to make it more authentic and meaningful. Treat AI collaboration as just the launchpad - it’s your knowledge of the children and experience that brings the story to life!
3?? AI for Family Engagement & Communication About Sustainability
Embedding sustainability should extend to family and community involvement. But engaging busy families and carers can sometimes be a bit of a challenge, especially when they are already balancing busy schedules and multiple priorities.
I know that many services struggle to communicate their wonderful sustainability efforts effectively. Whether it's writing newsletters, creating event invitations, or encouraging family participation in different ways, these tasks (and the procrastination and second guessing they often lead to!) can take valuable time away from play-based interactions.
AI can help you here by drafting family-friendly communication materials that you can tweak and personalise - saving hours of writing time.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Write a short, engaging parent newsletter update explaining our new sustainability initiative which is [enter your details] and how families and carers can contribute."
?? Why This Works: AI removes the stress of writing newsletters and family updates from scratch, giving you a ready-made template that you can edit and personalise.
4?? Finding Grants & Funding for Sustainability Projects
Larger sustainability initiatives like community gardens, composting systems, or water tanks often require funding. But finding relevant grants and writing the applications (not to mention collecting all the bits of paper they usually want attached!) can be time-consuming for busy educators and leaders.
AI can help by researching current funding opportunities and helping you prepare applications that align with the grant requirements.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Find and summarize sustainability grants available for early childhood education in [your location] for 2025. Focus on funding for initiatives like gardening, waste reduction, and eco-friendly resources."
?? Why This Works: Instead of spending hours searching for grants and reading through complex guidelines, AI can provide a condensed summary of relevant opportunities, allowing you to focus your energy on the most promising options.
?? Empowered Ed Tip: Use AI to create customised sustainability challenges for families! Try prompts like: "Draft a friendly social media post inviting families to participate in a 'Reduce Waste at Home' challenge." "Create a fun, engaging email encouraging families to use reusable containers in lunchboxes next month."
Families are more likely to engage when communication is clear, inviting, and easy to action…and AI can help you achieve that with minimal effort!
Using AI as a tool and assistant to your work doesn’t take away the hands on, caring aspects of teaching - it simply reduces the stress of repetitive tasks, so you can spend more time engaging with children and introducing the experiences, activities and projects you have planned..
Guiding Whole-Service Sustainability
As a director, educational leader, or sustainability officer, you play a crucial role in embedding sustainability across your service. Here’s a few practical ways AI can help you lead and support your team:
1?? Create a Service-Wide Sustainability Framework
Instead of piecemeal sustainability efforts that vary from room to room (centre environments)? or coordinators to educators (FDC/OSHC), AI can help you develop a consistent approach across your service.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Help me create a simple, one-page sustainability framework for our early learning centre that includes key focus areas, educator responsibilities, and measurable goals. Make it practical and achievable."
?? Why This Works: A clear framework ensures all educators understand expectations and can embed sustainability consistently, regardless of which room they work in, what shift they're on or working on their own in a home based environment.
2?? Support Educator Professional Development
Many educators want to incorporate sustainability but may lack confidence or knowledge in certain areas.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Create a mini-training session on embedding sustainability for my educator team. Include 3 practical activities we can do together during a 30-minute staff meeting, and focus on building educator confidence."
?? Why This Works: Regular, bite-sized professional development keeps sustainability top-of-mind without overwhelming your team.
3?? Track and Celebrate Sustainability Progress
To maintain momentum, it's important to track progress and celebrate wins, no matter how small.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Help me design a simple sustainability tracking system for our [early learning centre/FDC/OSHC/Preschool] that allows us to measure progress in areas like [waste reduction, energy conservation, and family engagement]."
?? Why This Works: Visible progress motivates people and helps demonstrate your commitment to quality practice during assessment and rating visits.
4?? Simplify & Organise Sustainability Reporting for QIP
For Australian services, demonstrating sustainability efforts is essential for quality improvement planning.
?? Try This Prompt:
"Help me draft evidence of sustainable practice for our Quality Improvement Plan under Quality Area 3. Describe examples of how we embed sustainability through our physical environment, resources, and teaching practices that include the following actions and initiatives [enter your information for better response]."
?? Why This Works: AI can help you explain your sustainability practices in a way that clearly connects to the National Quality Standard, saving valuable planning time.
? Leadership Tip: Start with one focus area (e.g., reducing waste or increasing natural materials) and build from there. Small, consistent changes are more sustainable than trying to transform everything at once.
Embedding Sustainability In Different Environments
Another challenge to embedding sustainability is that it looks different depending on your learning environment. Here's a few tips and ideas for adapting sustainable practices to suit different early childhood settings:
Family Daycare & Home-Based Settings
In smaller spaces within home environments, focus on quality over quantity:
?? Try This Prompt:
"I run a family daycare in a small home environment with limited outdoor space. Suggest 5 sustainability activities that don't require a garden or large outdoor area, suitable for children aged 2-5 years."
Ideas To Try:
Early Learning Centres & Preschools
With multiple rooms and staff members, consistency is essential:
?? Try This Prompt:
"Help me create a centre-wide sustainability approach for our 6-room early learning centre that ensures consistent practice across different age groups (0-5 years) and different educator teams."
Strategies To Try:
Outside School Hours Care
With older children and limited setup/pack away time and split sessions, focus on child-led initiatives:
?? Try This Prompt:
"Suggest 5 sustainability challenges or projects that school-aged children (5-12 years) can lead themselves in our OSHC program. We need activities that can be set up and packed away each session."
Strategies To Try:
? Empowered Ed Tip:
No matter your ECE role or setting, focus on what you CAN do rather than what you can't. Even the smallest space or shortest session time can incorporate meaningful sustainability practices.
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How to Get AI to Give You Good Ideas...
If you're new to using AI, you might be wondering what exactly is a "prompt" and why does it matter?
A prompt is simply the question or instruction you type into an AI assistant (such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini) to get a response.
Think of it like asking a coach or tutor for advice - you'll get better answers when you ask in a clear, specific way rather than something vague or general.
For example:?
? Weak prompt: "Give me some sustainability ideas." (This is too broad and might give generic, impractical suggestions.)?
? Stronger prompt: "Suggest 5 sustainability activities for 3-5-year-olds using only recycled and natural materials in a small indoor space." (This is specific and provides details AI can use to tailor its response.)
?? The more context you provide, the more relevant and practical the AI response will be - it only takes a few extra seconds but it will save you time in the long run and increase your skills in prompting!
The Formula for Strong Prompts
When writing prompts, try to include:?
? WHO: The age group or role (e.g., educators, families, children 3-5 years)?
? WHAT: The task or challenge (e.g., planning sustainability activities, writing a learning story)?
? WHERE: The setting or conditions (e.g., indoor, outdoor, small space, large centre)?
? HOW: The desired response style (e.g., simple, detailed, linked to EYLF)?
? WHY: The purpose (e.g., to engage children, to simplify documentation)
Now, let's see what this could look like in action with some editable AI prompts designed to help you embed sustainability in your early learning setting...
AI Prompts to Try This Week
When I train educators on how to use AI tools meaningfully and ethically in their practice, I've found that having some "fill-in-the-blank" style prompts makes getting started much easier and helps with the initial ‘experimentation’ stage which is the best way to learn what works and what doesn’t.?
With that in mind why not try one of these prompts I’ve created specifically for sustainability planning that you can copy, modify, and use right away:
1. For Activity Ideas:
"Suggest 5 play-based sustainability activities for [age group: e.g., 3-5 year olds] that:
This type of specific prompt will give you ideas that actually work for YOUR context, not generic Pinterest-worthy setups that require materials you don't have or hours of prep time!
2. For Documentation Support:
"Help me draft a brief learning story about this sustainability experience:
This can save you so much documentation time, especially after a busy day when the brain is a little fried but you want to capture that meaningful moment before you forget all the details!
3. For Family Engagement:
"Draft a short, engaging paragraph for our family newsletter about:
This helps you communicate your sustainability initiatives in a way that's informative without being preachy – so important for bringing families along on your journey!
4. For Sustainability Hub Materials:
"Suggest 10 open-ended questions I could display in our sustainability hub to prompt children's thinking about [topic: e.g., where our food comes from, how plants grow, why we save water]. Make the questions suitable for [age group] and encourage investigation rather than yes/no answers."
These questions can be printed or written on simple cards to refresh your sustainability hub regularly without having to come up with all the ideas yourself.
Embedding Sustainability with Confidence
So we’ve (hopefully!) established by now that ‘embedding sustainability’ into early learning programs and environments is more about small, intentional actions that naturally become part of your indoor and outdoor spaces, interactions, and daily routines with children.
There is no finite "only one right way" to do this. Sustainability in an early childhood setting will look different in a large early learning centre, a family daycare home, or an outdoor kindergarten program.
What matters most is reflecting on what works for your service type, your team, and, most importantly, the children in your care.
Reflection is key to embedding sustainability effectively. It helps us:
? Identify what we're already doing well?
? Pinpoint gaps or challenges?
? Find realistic ways to improve without adding extra stress?
? Encourage professional discussion among educators and leaders?
? Support a shared, whole-of-service approach to sustainability
Sustainability is also deeply linked to quality practice under the EYLF and NQS so engaging in reflective practice helps ensure sustainability isn't just a box-ticking exercise, but something that truly boosts children's learning, engagement, and understanding of the world around them.
Questions for Personal Reflection or Team Discussions
These questions are designed to help educators, leaders, and teams think critically about how sustainability is currently embedded - and what steps can be taken to improve.
Make the most of them to:
Reflective Questions for Educators & Teachers
For individual reflection or discussion in team meetings
1?? How do I currently integrate sustainability into daily play and learning experiences? Is it intentional, or could I embed it more naturally?
2?? In what ways do I model sustainable habits for children (e.g., conserving water, reusing materials, reducing waste)?
3?? What are the biggest challenges I face when trying to embed sustainability in my setting? (Time, resources, support, knowledge?)
4?? How do I ensure sustainability practices are inclusive and cater to different learning styles, cultural perspectives, and family circumstances?
5?? How could I use AI tools to save time on sustainability planning and documentation so I can focus more on hands-on learning?
Reflective Questions for Leaders, Directors & Sustainability Officers
For leadership reflection or guiding whole-centre discussions
1?? How does our service currently approach sustainability? Is it embedded across all rooms and routines, or only visible in specific areas (e.g., gardening)?
2?? How can we ensure sustainability is consistent across different classrooms, educators, and shifts?
3?? What barriers might educators be facing when embedding sustainability? How can we support them better (e.g., time, training, leadership support)?
4?? Are families actively engaged in our sustainability efforts? If not, how can we better communicate, involve, and empower them?
5?? How can AI support our whole-centre approach to sustainability? Could it assist with planning, policy writing, grant applications, or team collaboration?
Reflective Questions for Family Daycare & Home-Based Educators
For self-reflection or discussions with coordinators
1?? How can I embed sustainability in small spaces with limited outdoor areas?
2?? What simple sustainability habits can I encourage in my mixed-age group without overwhelming younger children?
3?? How do I balance sustainability in my home environment while also meeting regulatory requirements for cleanliness, safety, and family use?
4?? Are families aware of the sustainability efforts in my setting? How can I communicate them more effectively?
5?? What one small change can I make next week to further embed sustainability?
Taking Action: What's Your Next Step?
Reflection is valuable, but real change happens when we act. After reflecting, choose one small, achievable action step to implement this week.
Need help? Try this AI prompt:
"Based on my reflections, I want to improve [specific sustainability goal]. Suggest 3 simple ways to make this happen in an early learning setting."
More AI-Powered Sustainability Ideas...
?? Want to explore AI's role in sustainability even further? Listen to Episode 18 of the Early Education in the Age of AI podcast titled:
'Embedding Sustainability into Play-Based Learning with AI'
????What You’ll Find Out in This Episode:
? Why sustainability in early childhood matters (and how it connects to the EYLF & NQS)
? Beyond the recycling bin! How to truly embed sustainability into children’s daily play and routines
? Setting up an eco-friendly learning environment (no matter your space!)
? Fun & easy play-based sustainability activities using loose parts, nature, and upcycled materials
? How to empower children as active participants in sustainable practices (so they take ownership!)
? Simple AI prompts you can copy and use today to get instant sustainability inspiration from an AI Assistant
?? Quick Tip: Listen with a notebook handy - you're going to want to jot down some of these ideas! (Or use your phone's voice notes if you're multi-tasking!)
Press play below...Happy listening! ??
You can listen to other episodes from the podcast on this page or by searching ‘Early Education in the Age of AI’ in your favourite podcast player.
Professional development doesn't always have to mean formal training or lengthy readings. Sometimes the best learning happens when we're simply listening and relating to experiences we understand.
You’ll find more in depth ideas, strategies and visual inspiration over on The Empowered Educator blog. I’ve collected a few posts that I know you’ll find helpful if you’re interested in learning more about how to embed sustainable practice and ensure children have opportunities to become active learners .
Simply click on a title below to read more:
I hope this edition of The AI Empowered Accelerator has given you fresh inspiration for embedding sustainability into your early learning environment…without the usual overthinking projects and procrastinating on planning! ??
Sustainability really doesn't have to be complicated or confusing to get ‘right’. It's not about adding more to your planning each week or making huge changes overnight…it's about small, intentional actions that naturally become part of your routines, play spaces, and interactions with children.
And now that you know how AI can support you - by saving time on planning, brainstorming new ideas, simplifying documentation, and improving family communication - embedding sustainability will feel easier, more achievable, and even more engaging for children.
?? So try not to overthink it!
Start with one small step, one new habit, and one new idea - and let it grow from there.
Your Quick Action Steps for Next Week
? Choose one sustainability idea generated using AI and try it with your children. (Use the prompt: "Suggest 5 sustainability activities using only recycled and natural materials for [age group].")
? Observe & involve children in everyday eco-friendly choices, like turning off lights or sorting recyclables.
? Use AI to draft a learning story from an observation about sustainability play. (Prompt: "Write a learning story about children engaging in [activity], linked to EYLF Outcome 2.")
? Take one small action to engage families - send an AI-generated newsletter update or social media post about your sustainability efforts. (Prompt: "Write a warm, engaging update for families about our sustainability initiatives.")
Here's to making sustainability simpler, more engaging, and truly embedded in our early learning spaces!
How Else Can I Support You?
If today's newsletter has inspired you to see how AI can save you time, support sustainability, and promote play-based learning, it's time to take the next step!
Join me inside the AI-Empowered Educators Membership, where you'll get:?
? Step-by-step video training on using AI for planning, documentation, reflection & play-based learning?
? Access to exclusive AI assistants trained by me specifically for early education professionals - ready to help 24/7!?
? Personalised support & guidance to help you use AI ethically & effectively.?
? A community of like-minded educators exploring ways AI can simplify their workload and spark creativity.
#EarlyChildhoodEducation #AIinEducation #TeacherSupport #EmpoweredEd #Aiempowerededucator #edtech #aiforteachers #EarlyLearning #ECE
AI-Empowered Early Childhood Education Consultant | Helping ECE Leaders & Educators Use Ethical, Innovative AI Strategies To Improve Planning & Playful Learning
3 周?? How do you currently embed sustainability in your early learning setting? I’d love to hear from you! Is it through nature play, upcycled materials, composting, or everyday eco-friendly habits like turning off lights and reducing waste?