Can learners name and describe a tree special to them? What makes it special?
A Kindergarten class had recently read the book Maple by Lori Nichols. In this story, a girl named Maple is strongly connected to a tree that she is named after. After reading, the teacher posed the question to the class: “Is there a tree that you feel strongly connected to?” Ms. P reached out to parents/caregivers asking them to send in a photo of a tree that is special to their family that learners could paint and write about. Parents/caregivers sent in a large variety of trees with stories of why they were special to them. Learners whose family could not complete this request chose a tree in the schoolyard that they felt a special connection to.
Learners painted pictures of their chosen trees and put them up in the classroom. In viewing their pictures, learners noticed many similarities and differences in trees, leading to a rich discussion in which learners learned and experimented with terminology for tree parts (trunk, branches, roots, buds, leaves, etc.) and also terminology for comparison and description (rough/smooth, tall/short, bushy/thin, etc.). As learners discussed these features, they labelled their paintings with the new words they had learned.
Once paintings were complete, learners were asked to write a short statement to attach to their work that described what made this tree special to them or their family. Learners shared their reasonings in a discussion circle and again saw many similarities and differences between why they found their trees to be special.
Learners recognized their own and other’s personal preferences when they discussed why their special trees were important to them. For some, their connection to the tree was to do with what the tree produced, for others it was how they interacted with the tree (climbing), for some families there were memories associated with their tree. For some learners, their family or cultural beliefs were tied to their special tree, such as Hebrew learners discussing the sacred role of trees in Jewish holy days, or Indigenous learners discussing how some trees such as cedar could be used as medicine.
Learners discussed how their tree improved their well-being in ways such as showing beauty to be appreciated, and providing delicious fruit or shade on a hot day. Some learners revelled in climbing their trees and others liked to watch them through the seasons. Everyone had a different reason that their tree brought them joy.
Learners found that they all had a common connection of naming a special tree. Although they all had different opinions about why their tree was special, they found an interconnectedness with each other through this activity. To extend this effect, the teacher displayed the learners’ artwork along with learners’ writing statements of Why My Tree Is Special to Me in the hallway with a public provocation to the rest of the school stating: Do You Have a Tree That Is Special to You? Passersby were encouraged to write about a tree that was special to them. The classroom gathered many different tree stories and found a connection to the greater school population, bonding over their shared loved of their special trees.
As one could imagine, this sparked a new appreciation for trees within this Kindergarten classroom. So when learners noticed that some of the new saplings planted in their schoolyard were being treated poorly by others, they decided to take action. Learners made plans to care for their trees and other trees in the schoolyard by coming up with simple rules such as “Don’t pick off branches or leaves” or “Be gentle with trees because they are living.” Learners made signs with these rules and placed them near the trees in the schoolyard to help the new trees grow into bigger healthier trees that all could enjoy.
Nichols, Lori. Maple. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014.
