We think the book, Little Tree, is a great mentor and social emotional learning text. It is perfect to read during the change of seasons and could even be incorporated into a weather or planting unit! - Jodi and the Starts With a Story Team
SUMMARY
Little Tree lives in a forest surrounded by other trees. He enjoys hearing the morning dove sing and the squirrels climbing his branches. When fall comes, the trees’ leaves start to change color. Eventually, the other trees begin to drop their leaves. Little Tree holds onto his leaves tight, he is nervous about what will happen when he drops his leaves. Little Tree keeps his leaves through the winter. When spring comes, the other trees start to grow new leaves, while Little Tree keeps his old, brown leaves.
The seasons continue to change and Little Tree keeps his original leaves. The other trees have grown big and strong. The squirrels and morning dove sit in their branches. Little Tree is still very small and can no longer feel the sunlight. He remembers how he used to be the same as the other trees. When he finally begins to let go of his leaves, Little Tree is able to grow and change like the others.
USE THIS BOOK TO TEACH:
Here are some different ways you can use Little Tree in your classroom:
- Have students practice their visualization skills. This is a great way to increase reading comprehension.
- Teach students to use their prior knowledge to make inferences throughout the story.
- Students can write poems about their favorite season and practice descriptive writing.
- Let students get creative and add to the ending of this story.
- Teach a mini-lesson on verb tense.
- Review plural nouns and the different types of sentences.
- Discuss transitions with students and the different transitions people might go through.
NO-PREP PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES:
If you are looking for “ready to go” activities for the first day of school, be sure to check out the book companion. With it you’ll receive all of the following resources to align with this specific book:
- comprehension questions
- 30 writing prompts with themed paper
- vocabulary activities
- word study print & go activities
- ideas for grammar lessons with focus sentence printables
- social emotional learning discussion topics
- graphic organizers to target specific comprehension skills and strategies
All you’ll need to do is select the student pages you want to use and print!
GET THE PRINTABLE ACTIVITIES
ADDITIONAL BOOK SUGGESTIONS
You and your students will also love these similar books:
- Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson
- Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn by Kenard Pak
- Tops and Bottoms by Janet Stevens and Susan Crummel
- The Donkey Egg by Janet Stevens and Susan Crummel
LEARNING EXTENSION IDEAS
- Pair with non-fiction online readers like this list I curated for you on Epic books: Tree Non-Fiction
- Mystery Science: How Do Plants and Trees Grow
- Generation Genius: Four Seasons and Day Length
- Lifecycle of a Tree Video
- Directed Drawing: Draw a Tree
TRY OUT A SAMPLE COMPANION
It's hard to explain how amazing the Starts with a Story book companions are because there is just so much goodness included in each one. It's best if you experience using one for yourself. Sign up below & we'll send you an entire book companion to try out for FREE!
