Activity 31: Plant a Tree
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Never underestimate the power of a tree! Besides giving us an amazing array of paper and wood products, trees provide a host of other benefits – from shading our backyards to assisting in the maintenance of the global climate. Students can express their appreciation of trees by planning and carrying out their own tree-planting project.
This is one of 96 activities that can be found in PLT’s PreK-8 Environmental Education Activity Guide. To get the activity, attend a training either in person or online and receive PLT’s PreK-8 Guide.
The PreK-8 Environmental Education Activity Guide is a supplementary curriculum that is multi-disciplinary, with an emphasis on science, reading, writing, mathematics, and social studies.
Each activity displays explicit connections to practices and concepts expected by the following national academic standards so teachers can easily see where the materials will fit into their lesson plans:
- Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
- Common Core Toolkit, includes
- English Language Arts (CCSS.ELA)
- Mathematics (CCSS.MATH)
- College, Career, and Civic Life Framework for Social Studies (C3)
Our professional development further demonstrates these connections, as well as to state and local standards, contact your state coordinator.
STEM: Plant a Tree
There is much to know before planting a tree. These STEM lessons help students learn how to plant the right tree in the right place.
Amara and the Bats
Amara and the Bats Grades: K-2 Written and Illustrated by: Emma Reynolds Published by: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2021 ISBN-13: 978-1534469013 Recommended Reading As Halloween approaches, fall is a great time to think about bats and their role in our ecosystems. Bats live all around the world on every continent, with the exception... Read more »
Seed School
Seed School Grades K-2 Written by: Joan Holub Illustrated by: Sakshi Mangal Published by: Quarto Publishing Group USA, 2018 ISBN-13: 978-1633223745 Recommended Reading Spend a day at seed school and meet student seeds of all different shapes and sizes. Colorful illustrations showcase the biodiversity of the garden, while the story’s verse helps young readers... Read more »
Mud
Mud Ages 3 and up. ISBN: 0152024611 Published by Sandpiper, 2001 Authored by Mary Lyn Ray Illustrated by Lauren Stringer Recommended Reading What happens in spring? What happens before the fruit blossoms, before the daffodils flower, before the grass even grows? Why, mud, of course. In this book, the earth seems to secretly thaw... Read more »
Pablo’s Tree
Pablo’s Tree Grades PreK-3 By Pat Mora Illustrated by Cecily Lang ISBN: 0027674010 Recommended Reading Each year on his birthday, a young Mexican-American boy looks forward to seeing how his grandfather decorated the tree planted the day the boy was adopted. Authored by Pat Mora, this book embraces new traditions and values, as well... Read more »
EE Resources
Climate Challenge Board Game
Games4Sustainability can help you incorporate a sustainability-themed game in your activities to improve your understanding of important global issues today. Narrow your search from among 100+ games and simulations by filtering the games by the UN Sustainable Development Goals or use the advanced search for more options. Challenges include topics of food, climate, security, and... Read more »
Food and Climate Change
Understanding Food and Climate Change: An Interactive Guide uses video, photos, and hands-on experiences for educators and students to learn about how food and climate systems interact. Explore how personal choices about food can make a difference. Ideal for grades 6–12, with connections to Next Generation Science Standards and the National Curriculum Standards for Social Studies... Read more »
Offset Carbon Emissions
Want to help cut back on carbon emissions and slow the pace of global climate change? Check out this NASA produced educational game called OFFSET, appropriate for all ages. In the game you will see how CO2 is produced from burning coal and by gasoline powered cars. Playing the game, you will have to offset... Read more »
Go Plant a Tree!
In this short video from PBS Plum Landing, see how students work with a local arborist to plant a tree in their community. Underneath the video, you’ll find some simple conversation starting questions and additional resources to inspire your students.
Tree Product Images
Print out pages containing many examples of everyday products from trees!
School Gardens Fact Sheet
This USDA resource titled School Gardens: Using Gardens to Grow Healthy Habits in Cafeterias, Classrooms, and Communities provides a brief overview of the benefits and educational uses of school gardens. It includes links to successful school garden programs and tips for planning, staffing, funding and maintaining a school garden.
Carbon Cycle Activity
Carbon Cycle Activity (similar to “Water Wonders” Water Cycle activity) developed by Carlyn Nichols, PLT educator in Seward, Alaska. Helps relate the carbon cycle to climate change.
Climate Change around the World
An article in BBC News that discusses impacts of global warming in countries around the world and in major sectors of society: health, water, food, ecosystems, coasts, and industry.
Think Garden Video Series
This Think Garden video collection was produced by Kentucky Educational Television for elementary students as a teaching tool about growing food and all elements around food gardening. Consider using it to support PLT GreenWorks! or GreenSchools projects as we enter the growing season.
Zero Carbon
A free app that can be downloaded for Apple devices. Zero Carbon can calculate an individual’s carbon footprint by looking at a person’s daily habits. Once you know the amount of greenhouse gases your lifestyle is producing, this app offers tips on reducing that number. Zero Carbon also shows how your statistics stack up against world... Read more »
Plant for the Planet Video
Inspired by Wangari Maathai, 9-year-old Felix Finkbeiner founded “Plant for the Planet” and has planted more than 500,000 trees in Germany which he says will help sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Watch Felix’s video, part of the Young Voices on Climate Change series, to learn about his efforts to plant trees for a... Read more »
The Secret Life of Trees
This animated presentation for students in grades 3-5 explains in detail how an acorn becomes a tree. The audio is available in English and Spanish.
School Garden Checklist
Planning to start a garden project? Download this step-by-step guide, provided by the Let’s Move! Presidential initiative, to ensure you won’t miss any information that could support the health of your garden. Detailed checklists offer tips about soil safety, site selection, overall design, plant palette, how to build and use the garden, and the importance... Read more »
EPA’s Carbon Footprint Calculator
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website provides an interactive carbon footprint calculator designed for use by students in middle or high school. The calculator begins by asking students to investigate some baseline data points, such as their average home energy usage, transportation habits, and waste disposal process. Then, the calculator offers ways impact reduction... Read more »
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Students use a carbon footprint calculator to analyze their personal contribution to carbon dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere and design a solution for reducing their carbon footprint.
Climate Time Machine
Students explore the geologic history of a region of the world to see how past climatic changes have altered the landscape, and they create museum exhibits to model what earlier climate patterns can reveal about current global temperature trends.
Is It Only Natural?
Students explore various factors that have caused climate change in the past, analyze carbon dioxide levels over time, and construct a claim, supported with evidence and reasoning.
The Carbon Cycle
Students model the movement of carbon atoms in the carbon cycle and explore the relationship between atmospheric carbon and plants.