Tree Lifecycle

All living things have a lifecycle that includes, birth, growth, aging, and death. Trees go through these stages over the course of their life even though we may not be here to witness the full cycle. As trees go through their lifecycle their role in the ecosystem changes. Visit a local forest, park or explore your schoolyard for trees in different stages of their lifecycle from acorns to rotting logs. Observe the animals and insects that use them at each. Then use Project Learning Tree’s “Tree Lifecycle” to investigate the lifecycle of trees and their varying role in the forest ecosystem.

Young Child Extension
Ask children: Are trees alive? How do they know? How do trees start life? Go for a walk outside and find trees at different stages of their lifecycle, such as an acorn under a tree, a sapling just starting to grow, a mature tree and a log on the ground. As a class act out the lifecycle of a tree: curl into a ball (you’re a seed), slowing uncurl and kneel (you’ve sprouted), stick your arms up (you’ve grown branches), wiggle your fingers (you grew leaves), stand up (you grew tall), wiggle your toes (you grew lots of roots), sway around and sigh (you are now a mature tree and home to wildlife), make a creaking sound and fall over (you grew old and fell down during a storm), curl into a ball (you are one of your seeds growing from under your rotting wood), slowly uncurl and kneel (you are sprouting again)…and so the tree lifecycle goes around.

Book List
Grades PreK-2
Anthony, J. and C. Arbo. 1999. In a Nutshell (Sharing Nature with Children Book Series). Dawn Publications.
Aston, D. 2007. A Seed Is Sleepy. Chronicle Books LLC.
Behn, H. and J. Endicott. 1994. Trees. Henry Holt & Company, Inc.
Berger, M. 1994. All about Seeds: A Hands-on Science Book. Scholastic, Inc.
Buscagalia, L.F. 1982. The Fall of Freddie the Leaf: A Story of Life for All Ages. SLACK, Inc.
Burns, D.L. and L. Garrow. 1998. Trees, Leaves and Bark. T&N Children’s Publishing.
Burns, D.L. and J.F. McGee. 1996. Berries, Nuts,and Seeds (Take-Along Guide). T&N Children's Publishing.
Canizares, S., D. Moreton and B. Chessen. 1997. Who Lives in a Tree? Scholastic, Inc.
Carle, E. 1991. The Tiny Seed. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.
Cassie, B. and M. Burns. 1999. Trees. Scholastic, Inc.
Cole, J. 1995. The Magic School Bus Plants Seeds: A Book About How Living Things Grow. Scholastic, Inc.
DePalma, M.N. 2005. A Grand Old Tree. Scholastic, Inc.
Fowler, A. 2001. From Seed to Plant. Scholastic Library Publishing.
Gackenbach, D. 1996. Mighty Tree. Harcourt Children's Books.
Gibbons, G. 2002. Tell Me, Tree: All About Trees for Kids. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.
Hankin, R. 1995. Up the Tall Tree. Steck-Vaughn.
Hickman, P. 1996. A Seed Grows: My First Look at a Plant's Life Cycle. Kids Can Press, Ltd.
Iverson, D. 1999. My Favorite Tree: Terrific Trees of North America. Dawn Publications.
Lavies, B. 1989. Tree Trunk Traffic. Penguin Group (USA), Inc.
Miller, D. 2003. Are Trees Alive? Walker Books for Young Readers.
Moss, M. and A. Kennaway. 2005. This is the Tree. Random House Adult Trade Publishing Group.
Nayer, J. 1994. A Tree Can Be. Scholastic, Inc.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. Ecosystem of a Fallen Tree. Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.
Peck, J. and V. Petrone. 2005. Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.
Silverstein, S. 2004. The Giving Tree. HarperCollins Publishers.
Simon. S. 1973. A Tree on Your Street. Holiday House Inc.
Udry, J.M. and M. Simont. 1987. A Tree is Nice. HarperCollins Publishers.
Van Laan, N. 2000. A Tree for Me. Random House.
Worth, B. 2006. I Can Name 50 Trees Today!: All about Trees. Random House Publishing Group.

Grades 3-5
Arnosky, J. 1992. Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing the Trees. Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.
Bernard, R. 2001. A Tree for All Seasons. National Geographic Children’s Books.
Bourgoing, P. 1992. The Tree. Scholastic First Discovery Books.
Brenner, B. 2004. One Small Place in a Tree. Morrow/Avon.
Burns, D.L. and L. Garrow. 1998. Trees, Leaves and Bark. T&N Children’s Publishing.
Burns, D. 1996. Berries, Nuts, and Seeds. Northwood Press.
Canizares, S. 1997. Look at This Tree. Scholastic, Inc.
Cassie, B. and M. Burns. 1999. Trees. Scholastic, Inc.
Dorros, A. 1997. A Tree is Growing.
Dundy, M.R., and K. Richardson. 2010. Forests For All. MDCT Publishing.
Garelick, M. & Brenner, B. 1979. The Tremendous Tree Book. Four Winds Press.
George, K. 1998. Old Elm Speaks. Clarion Books.
Gibbons, G. 2002. Tell Me Tree: All About Trees for Kids. Little, Brown Young Readers.
Green, J. 1999. A Dead Log. Crabtree Publishing Company.
Hiscock, B. 1991. The Big Tree. Atheneum Books-MacMillan.
Iverson, D. 1999. My Favorite Tree: Terrific Trees of North America. Dawn Publications.
Kalman, B.1996. How a Plant Grows. Crabtree Publishing Company.
Locker, T. 1995. Sky Tree. Harper Collins Publishers.
Lyons, D. 2002. The Tree. Illumination Arts Publishing.
Miller, D. 2003. Are Trees Alive? Walker Books for Young Readers.
Morrison, G. 2005. Oak Tree. Houghton Mifflin Co.
Oppenheim, J. 1967. Have You Seen Trees. Addison Wesley Longman Publishing Company.
Pascoe, E. and D. Kuhn. 2003. Ecosystem of a Fallen Tree. Rosen Publishing Group, Inc.
Simon. S. 1973. A Tree on Your Street. Holiday House Inc.
Staub, F.J. 1998. America's Forests. Lerner Publishing Group.
Tresselt, A. 1992. The Gift of a Tree. Lothrop, Lee & Shephard Books.
Wong, H & Vessel, M. 1969. Our Tree. Addison-Wesley.

Grades 6-8
Arnosky, J. 1992. Crinkleroot’s Guide to Knowing the Trees. Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing.
Bates, J.W. 1991. Seeds to Plants: Projects with Biology. Scholastic Library Publishing.
Cassie, B. and M. Burns. 1999. Trees. Scholastic, Inc.
Garelick, M. & Brenner, B. 1979. The Tremendous Tree Book. Four Winds Press.
Simon. S. 1973. A Tree on Your Street. Holiday House Inc.

Grades 9-12
Heinrich, B. 1998. The Trees in My Forest. HarperCollins Publishers.
Kershner, B., et al. 2008. National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America. Sterling Publishing.
Stone, L.M. 2004. Forests. Rourke Publishing, LLC.