Lesson 5: Trees

For this activity, your child is going to use the Internet or an encyclopedia to match different types of trees and leaves with their names. Ask him to cut two pieces of construction paper into four strips each. He should then cut out the tree names and the illustrations of trees and leaves from the "Matching Trees" page. Ask him to glue the name of the tree at the top of the strip of construction paper with the corresponding leaf and picture of the tree. When he has finished, he will have strips for seven different trees. On the eighth strip, he can make a cover for a book of trees. The strips will be the pages for a book. He can staple them together on the left side of the strip.

Ask your child if he knows why leaves change colors in the fall. Explain that leaves have different colors of pigments at all times. In the summer, chlorophyll (the pigment that makes leaves green) is more abundant than the yellow and orange pigments. However, in the fall the leaves produce less chlorophyll and take a break from photosynthesis. At this time, the other colors appear on the leaves. Since the days are shorter in the fall and winter, the tree is not absorbing as much sunlight, and the colder temperatures prevent the tree from making as much chlorophyll.

Trees that lose all their leaves for part of the year are called deciduous trees. Explain to your child that deciduous trees lose their leaves in preparation for winter and ask if he remembers why evergreen trees don't have leaves that change color.

Have your child gather different shapes and sizes of leaves for a leaf rubbing project. He can place a few leaves flat on the table and then place a sheet of tracing paper over the leaf. Using a soft pencil or a crayon, he can gently rub over the tracing paper until the outline of the leaf shows through. Encourage him to use natural colors for the different leaves. Explain to him that the lines on the leaves are veins. Tell your child that these veins carry nutrients and water to the leaf.

For this math activity, your child will measure parts of trees and compare his measurements among trees. He will record his findings on the sheet, "Measuring Trees."

For this option, your child can make his measurement in inches and feet.

Help your child to measure in the US system (inches and feet) and metric system (centimeters and meters).