TEACHERS TAKE NOTE

Shelterwood

Susan Hand Shetterly

Illustrated by Rebecca Haley McCall

Paperback, $7.95, ISBN 978-0-88448-256-7

9 x 10, 40 pages, color illustrations

Children / Science; Grades 3-6

Shelterwood Teachers Guide:
Discovering the Forest

Judy Markowsky

Illustrated by Rosemary Giebfried

Paperback, $9.95, ISBN 978-0-88448-211-6

8.5 x 11, 80 pages, illustrations

Children / Science; Grades 3-6

Shelterwood is a lovely intergenerational story which sensitively explains the concept of environmental stewardship. In this book a grandfather shares his love and knowledge of the woods he owns with his granddaughter while explaining what is involved in the management of a woodlot. Students will find this book to be one of the best introductions to learning about conservation and management of natural resources.

Shelterwood will help inspire classroom conversations about:

• Biodiversity and tree species
• Wildlife in woodland settings
• Natural resources around the world
• Careers in Forestry

Activity: Keep a Tree's Diary

Objective: Students will get practice in tree identification, patient observation, creative writing and art, and keeping a journal over time.

• Concept: Trees change all the time, but seeing these changes requires close observation over a period of time.
• You Will Need: Clipboards or notebooks.
• What To Do:
  • Have each student identify a tree in his/her backyard or schoolyard. They will have weekly observation periods, and write in their journals the date, time, temperature, weather, and their observations.
  • Different angles and themes can be brought in throughout the year, such as writing from a tree's point of view: "Because it rained all morning, droplets dripped down my bark and off my twigs at 1:00 PM."
  • The possibilities are endless, limited only by your creativity and that of the children. Examples: write a poem; measure the growing leaves weekly in spring; look for insects hiding in the bark; dig among the roots, looking for the tree's soil.
  • At the end of the year, ask students how the tree has changed.