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Inspire young people connect with the environment through hands-on, multidisciplinary
activities for all grades, settings and subject levels

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Activity
A chipmunk eating a berry on a tree branch

Every Tree for Itself

Through a simulation, students explore the ecosystem components that trees need to live and grow, and learn how organisms in an ecosystem often must compete for their needs.

3-5
Activity
A chipmunk eating a berry on a tree branch

Power Plants

Plants are crucial components of most ecosystems because they provide the energy that other organisms need to live. In this inquiry-based activity, students design investigations to explore what these “power plants” need to function and grow.

3-5
Activity
A chipmunk eating a berry on a tree branch

Web of Life

By conducting research and simulating a food web, students take a close look at a forest ecosystem and discover ways that plants and animals are connected to each other.

3-5
Activity
A chipmunk eating a berry on a tree branch

A Home for Many

From their leafy branches to their tangled roots, trees provide a habitat for a host of plants and animals. Students inventory the plants and animals that live in, on, and around trees and discover how trees meet their needs for survival.

3-5
Activity
A chipmunk eating a berry on a tree branch

The Forest of S.T. Shrew

Students take a “shrew’s-eye-view” of life in the woods to gain an understanding of the variety of organisms that live in forests and to learn how living and non-living things interact.

3-5
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Picture a Tree

Students draw a picture of tree from memory. As they explore trees close up through the other unit activities, they will draw new pictures and compare them with the original pictures they drew.

K-2
Activity Guide
cover of PLT's Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood

Environmental Experiences for Early Childhood

Bring nature into the classroom and safely take young learners outdoors, whether you live in an urban, suburban, or rural community. Encourages children ages 3 to 6 to explore, discover and communicate in expressive ways with over 130 experiences.

Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Habitat Pen Pals

Students learn about the diversity of habitats in their state and write letters from the perspective of organisms living in those habitats.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Schoolyard Safari

Students look for signs of animals living in and around trees in the schoolyard, observing how a tree can serve as a habitat or as one part of habitat.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Trees as Habitats

Students inventory the plants and animals that live in, on, and around trees and discover how plants and animals depend on trees in many ways.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Get in Touch with Trees

Students explore the parts of a tree through mystery boxes, a blindfolded walk, and by sorting different leaves. This activity sharpens observation skills and descriptive vocabulary of trees and tree parts.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Bursting Buds

Students observe leaf buds over time to see what happens as the tiny, bright green leaves burst forth.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Every Tree for Itself

This simulation helps students model and understand the conditions that trees need to live and grow.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Signs of Fall

Students observe signs of autumn and gather data about trees on or near the school site as fall approaches.

K-2
Activity
3 young girls examine pine needles outdoors

Adopt a Tree

By “adopting” a tree and observing it over time, students practice their observation skills, look for patterns, and develop a personal connection to the adopted tree.

K-2