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Tree Buddies
Trees—one of the major spokes in the wheels of nature—contribute a lot to our lives, physically, aesthetically, emotionally and spiritually.
Trees in our city shade and cool our streets and buildings, creating beautiful green towers to soften the harsh urban environment. A big tree can provide a day's oxygen for up to four people. Trees contribute to a community's sense of place. They increase property value. they provide fruit. They give us beautiful shapes, flowers, fall colors and scents, and they provide homes for birds, butterflies, squirrels, and other wildlife. Their flowers are a food source for bees. In colder climates, trees can help insulate homes from cold winds as well. Trees catch rainfall, slow storm run-off, and prevent soil erosion.
Not so obvious are the emotional and healing benefits to people, as well as the inspiration and sense of spiritual renewal that trees provide. Children are naturally drawn to trees. A tree provides a myriad of sensory experiences for the child, and a tree soon becomes a good friend!
PREPARATION
AGES
3-6 grade
K-2 adjustment
TIME
45 minutes
PURPOSE
To have students develop a personal relationship with a tree and understand its role in the cycles.
MATERIALS
Container (basket bag)
Various tree-related products
Tree Buddy Profile [pdf]
BOOKS
The Giving Tree
by Shel Silverstein
A Walk in the Woods
by Christian Couture
Thinking Like a Mountain
by John Seed, Joanna Macy, Pat Fleming and Arne Naess
Keepers of the Earth
by Michael Caduto and Joseph Bruchac
The Earth Speaks
by Steven Van Matre
Have You Seen Trees?
by Joanne Oppenheim
Redwoods Are the Tallest Trees in the World
by David A. Adler
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- Prepare a container (basket, bag, etc.) of tree-related products—sheet of paper, piece of fruit, wooden spoon, bird nest, etc.
- Plan to use a tree, or group of trees as "buddies" for the activity. If there are no trees on the school grounds, try to bring in a potted tree.
- Make copies of the Tree Buddy Profile
[pdf]
MOTIVATOR
With a basket of tree-related products in hand, say, "You're going to meet a special buddy today. This buddy is special because it:
- gives us air. (Breath in and out.)
- gives us food. (Hold up fruit.)
- gives us wood. (Hold up ruler, wooden spoon, etc.)
- gives us paper. (Hold up a piece of paper.)
- gives us a home for animals. (Hold up nest or picture of a bird.)
- and, our buddy gives us beauty and shade.
What do you think it is? (A tree.) Let's go meet your new buddy."
PROCEDURE
- Take students to a tree, or group of trees.
- Have the students work individually, in pairs or groups. Pass out the Tree Buddy Profiles.
[pdf]
- Allow the students time with their tree, and have them fill out the profile.
- After the students have finished, gather under the tree (or trees) to share what they wrote.
ASSESSING THEIR LEARNING
What do you think trees give you? (Wood products, food, shade, play areas, beauty, oxygen, reduced energy use...)
What thoughts/feelings came to you when you were with your tree?
STRETCHING THEIR THINKING
- "How do you think trees help the soil cycle in the city forest?" (Trees drop leaves, branches, back and seeds to decompose and add needed nutrients to the soil.)
- "How do you think trees help the air cycle in the city forest?" (Trees take in carbon dioxide from the air, and as a by-product of photosynthesis, release oxygen back into the air. Trees act as filters absorbing, holding, and transforming smog particles.)
- Read a few "tree poems" that express the feelings that others have written about their "tree buddies."
- Have students visit their tree buddies in a week, a month, next season, to observe any changes and make comparisons.
THE NEXT STEP
Journal Activity
Have students tell a story or write a poem about their tree buddy.
Student Activity Booklet
Have students draw a picture of their tree buddy.
Grade Adjustment: K-2
Observe the tree as a group, discussing the questions on the profile, rather than filling out answers.
Make leaf and back prints of the tree.
WISDOM OF OUR TRADITION
And not only does the law of bal tash'hit apply to trees; rather anyone who destroys dishes/vessels, or tears clothes... or stops up a spring, or destroys food—that person violates the law of bal tash'hit.
Maimonides, Mishneh Torah Melakhim 6:10
After the Maggid's (a famous rabbi) death, his followers came together and talked about the things that he had done. Someone asked, "Do you know why our master went to the pond every day at dawn and stayed there for a while before coming home again?" Because he was learning from the song with which the frogs praise God. It takes a very long time to learn that song.
Tales of the Hasidim—Early Masters
It is forbidden to live in a city that does not have a garden or greenery.
Mishna Kiddushin 4:12
God did not create it (the earth) a wasteland, but formed it for habitation.
Isaiah 45:18
And God blessed them and said to them, be fruitful and multiply, replenish the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air, and over every living that moves on the earth.
Genesis 1:28
And God took Adam and put him in the Garden of Eden to till it and to guard it.
Genesis 2:15
God called your name a leafy olive tree, beautiful with shapely fruit.
Jeremiah 11:17
Such is your height (stature, importance) that you resemble a towering palm tree.
Song of Songs 7:8
May your children be as young olive saplings around your table.
From a blessing based on the shiva minim, the seven species
Chopping down a tree is allowed only for essential needs, and not for luxuries.
Jair Hayyim Bacharach (20th century responsa)
Our rabbis said: Even those things that you may regard as completely superfluous to Creation—such as fleas, gnats and flies—even they, too, were included in Creation; and God's purpose is carried out through everything, even through a snake, a scorpion, a gnat or a frog.
Midrash Genesis Rabba 10:7
The Torah... did not permit humans to kill any creature and eat its flesh; rather, all of them were to eat vegetation. Only later, from the time of Noah's children, does God permit people and animals to eat meat.
Rashi
It should not be believed that all beings exist for the sake of humanity's existence... rather, all the other beings too have been intended for their own sakes.
Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed III: 13, 12th century
Source: Revisiting Jewish Environmental Education,
A publication of COEJL and CAJE (Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education)
Booklets available through COEJL.
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