Green Gifts for Kids: The Top Five

Several Earth conscious designers have come out with environmentally friendly green gifts for kids you can buy for every kid on your list this holiday season, from babies to teenagers. All of these gifts spark the imagination and help protect the environment by using recycled, reclaimed or sustainable materials.

Eco Playdough

This eco friendly playdough from Giggle works just like the real thing, without all the nasty chemicals. Eco playdough is made from all natural ingredients like rosemary oil, flour and blueberries. Even the container is eco friendly- it's made from cornstarch and completely biodegradable. Each jar over Eco playdough comes with 5 ounces of dough in orange, yellow, green and pink. Optional accessories include a sustainable rolling pin made from bamboo. This product is recommended for ages two and up.

Eco Plush Veggies

These plush veggie toys from Under the Nile are made from 100 percent organic Egyptian cotton. The veggies come in a wooden crate and each set includes four veggie plushes- a carrot, snap pea, tomato and mushroom. Each plush stands eight to nine inches tall. The eco plush veggie crate is recommended for young toddlers and babies, or older children who like to collect stuffed animals.

Reclaimed Hand Puppets

Crate & Levi has a collection of hand puppets made entirely from reclaimed wool. You can choose from 10 different animals including a cow, monkey, moose, giraffe, walrus, parrot, frog, dog or bear. Each hand puppet is handmade, and patterns and colors will vary, all though you have the option to choose "boy" or "girl" when purchasing.

Scavenger Recycling Kit by Uberstixs

Ubersticks created this kit to teach kids about recycling household items. Each kit includes materials to build a spaceship and a pirate ship. Kids will get the basic building materials with the kit, but will need to follow the scavenger manual to build the UFO and pirate ship using items they find around their house- like a plastic cup, ice cream sticks and bottle caps. Ubersticks recommends this toy for children ages 7 and up and you can purchase one at Amazon.

Eco Town

Eco Town by Plan Toys is similar to the build-your-own wooden play towns, except Eco Town runs on sustainable power. The town is loaded with environmentally conscious features like a house run on solar power and a hybrid vehicle gas station. Eco Town is one of the most educational green gift for kids and recommended for children ages 3 and up.