This is a physical way or teaching the children about the parts of a tree, Year 4 threw themselves into the challenge and completed it both under instruction and then independently as a class.
Challenge: as a class you will be creating a tree by acting out tree parts, the Leader will direct you.
- Two people for the Heartwood – ask two people to stand back-to-back in the middle. They say, “Standing tall and strong”
- Two people to be a tap root: Sit at the bottom of the heartwood with their backs to the heartwood. When we get going the tap root will say, ‘Holding on tightly’.
- Four people lateral Roots ideally choose people with long hair that don’t mind laying on the ground. When the leader says, “Let’s slurp” – you all make the sound of, ‘slurrrrp’!
- Four people to make the xylem or sapwood, tell the group to face inwards holding hands making a circle around the heartwood.
- When the leader says, “Bring the water up”, the sapwood say ‘Wheeee’ and bring your hand up from the ground to the sky!
- To make the phloem, form a circle around the sapwood, also facing inwards – stretch hands upward and outward.
- When the leader says, “Let’s make food”, the phloem says ‘Whoooo’ dropping the arms down to the ground!
The remaining people become the bark! They face outwards. They say, ‘I will protect you’.
The Nature Principle: Forest School takes place in a woodland or natural wooded environment to support the development of a relationship between the learner and the natural world.
Article 28: We all have the right to a good quality education.
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- Miss Rowe shouts out the instructions. We begin with the heartwood standing strong and true.
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- The tap roots are added these add stability and draw up nutrients and water.
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- Lateral roots spread out under the soil, these feed the tree from the ground and have fine hairs at the ends.
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- Xylem and then phloem join in, these networks of cells draw water up the tree and pass sugar from photosynthesis down the tree.
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- Finally a protective layer of outer bark.
