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The Tree Play
An interactive activity by Barbara Lerman-Golomb

For a group of children (pre-school to kindergarten)

Part I: Have half the children stand up. They are trees. The other half are the people, animals, or other things that benefit from trees.

NARRATOR: Once there was an elm tree. (Child is a tree.) It gave us shade from the sun. (Children sit under the tree.) Near the elm tree stood a fruit tree. (Child is a tree.) It gave us apples that were good to crunch. (Children take a bite out of the apples.) There was a dogwood tree. (Child is a tree.) Its branches were great to climb on. (Children climb tree.) There was a cottonwood tree. (Child is tree.) It gave us oxygen and good clean air to breathe. (Children take deep breaths.) There was a birch tree. A cardinal made a nest in it. (Child pretends to be a bird.) Once, there was a maple tree. (Child is a tree.) We collected maple syrup from it for our pancakes. (Child taps trees and tastes syrup.) Strong and tall stood a mighty oak tree. (Child is a tree.) We hung a swing from it and played for hours and hours. (One child pushes a pretend swing, while the other pretends to be swinging.) From a pine tree, (Child is a tree) we collected pine cones and needles for a fragrant basket. In the rain forest stood a kapok tree. (Child is a tree.) Animals found shelter in its leaves. (Children sit in the shelter of the tree.) Nearby stood a pretty pink wisteria tree. (Child is a tree.) It was beautiful to look at.

Part 2: As each tree is mentioned, the child sits down. Eventually, all of the people and animals have sat down and there are no more trees and no one to enjoy them.

NARRATOR: One day some people came and cut down the elm tree. (The children sit down.) Now, the tree tree no longer gives us shade. (The child sits down.) Someone else came along and chopped down the fruit tree. (Child sits down.) Now the tree no longer gives us crunchy apples. (The child sits down.) Another person cut down the dogwood tree. (Child sits down.) Now we no longer climb the tree's branches. Soon some people came and plowed down the cottonwood tree. (Child sits down.) Now the air isn't as fresh as it once was. (The children cough and sit down.) It wasn't long before someone came and uprooted the birch tree. Now there was no place for the cardinal to build its nest. A person came and cut down the maple tree. (Child sits down.) Now there won't be any maple syrup for our pancakes. Then someone came to chop down the mighty oak tree. (The child sits down.) Now there's no place to hang our swing. (The swingers sit down.) Some people even cut through the rain forest and destroyed the kapok tree. (Child sits down.) Now there's no place for the animals to find shelter. (Animals sit down.) And finally, others came and chopped down the wisteria tree. (Child sits down.) And now there are no more beautiful trees to look at. No more trees for people to enjoy. (The stage is empty.) There are many wonderful things that trees give us and do for us. We named a few. Can you name some more?

1. Trees provide shelter and shade for wildlife and humans
2. Trees provide homes for wildlife
3. Food for animals and people (berries, leaves, pine cones, fruits)
4. Absorb carbon dioxide--provide oxygen
5. Makes the earth cleaner and cooler--greenhouse effect
6. Provides medicines
7. Provides dyes and paints
8. Helps keep soil from washing away--roots hold soil in place by absorbing water
9. Heat for warmth and cooking
10. Wood for furniture
11. Fibers for clothing
12. Books
13. Paper for writing stories and making pictures
14. Noise reduction
15. In Israel and other places where there is a lot of desert, trees protect people from dust storms.