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Get Ready
Suggested Supplies
Nature provides all you need for this activity, though you
can also use:
- Construction paper
- Drawing utensils (crayons, markers)
- Binoculars, magnifying glasses
Before You Begin
"Today we’re going on a special walk. We’ll use our eyes, ears, and noses to notice trees, animals, and other parts of nature and talk about the many ways they make our lives healthier and more enjoyable. We’ll practice gratitude, which is when we feel happy about something and want to say thank you."
Step-by-Step
Step 1: Take a short, mindful stroll
Choose a natural area—like a forest, park, schoolyard, courtyard, or playground—where you can walk and observe the world around you.
Encourage children to use their senses to notice what’s around them:
- See different shapes, colors, and things in motion
- Hear rustling leaves, bird calls, or people laughing
- Touch bark, leaves, grass, or smooth rocks
- Smell flowers, soil, or fresh air
Helpful tip!
Remind children this is not just any walk. This is a “wonder wander!” A wonder wander is when you walk slowly and observe with curiosity and care.
Step 2: Talk about gratitude
As you walk, pause and invite children to point out things that they notice and are grateful for.
Ask:
- How does being outside make you feel?
- What do you like about trees, flowers, birds…?
- How do trees make our neighborhood/schoolyard better?
This is a good opportunity to point out some ways that trees keep us healthy and safe. Did you know…
- Trees keep the air clean and provide oxygen we need to breathe.
- Trees provide shade that keep our neighborhoods cool.
- Fallen leaves decompose into rich soil, feeding nearby plants. The more healthy plants in our communities, the cleaner our air is!
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Step 3: Practice giving thanks
Encourage children to say thank you out loud to the beings they notice. This could sound like:
- “Thank you, tree, for the shade!”
- “Thank you, bird, for singing!”
- “Thank you, sun, for keeping me warm!”
Let them express gratitude in their own words.
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Step 4: Create a thank you card
After your walk, find a comfortable place to sit for a few minutes (this part can be done inside). Encourage children to draw what they appreciated or enjoyed. They can also write or dictate a short message of thanks.
Remind children that there is no wrong way to draw! Start with a simple shape or line and see where it takes you. Trees can be purple if you choose!
Cards can be taken home, displayed in a classroom, or placed temporarily in nature (to be retrieved later).
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Step 5: Share and reflect.
Invite children to share something they drew, wrote, or noticed during the activity. Ask open-ended questions to encourage reflection and storytelling:
- “What did you enjoy most about making your art?”
- “How did you feel while you were drawing or coloring?”
- “What do you think we can learn from trees?”
- “Can we do anything to help the trees in our community?”
Thank children for sharing, letting them know that their thoughts, kindness, and artwork are important.
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Children Are Working On
- Expressing gratitude and empathy
- Using their senses to observe and describe the natural world
- Telling stories through drawing, writing, or dictation
- Presenting knowledge and ideas
- Showing care and curiosity about living things
Variations
- For babies and toddlers, focus on sensory exploration. Adults can share what they notice, expressing thanks aloud.
- For older children, repeat the activity regularly and make a gratitude notebook. You might title it, Our Favorite Trees, or We Love Nature Because…
- Personify! Write a thank you card from the perspective of a plant or animal (like a squirrel). ”Thank you, tree, for providing a home for my nest!”
- Move it! Play an old-fashioned hoedown song and dance around a tree to show your appreciation!
More to Explore
Word Bank
- Gratitude - Noticing the good things in your life and saying “thank you” for them.
- Wonder - The feeling you get when something is amazing, new, or makes you curious, like when you see a rainbow, look up at the stars, or learn something surprising. It makes you want to ask questions and learn more.
- Wander - To walk around slowly without a set plan — just looking around and exploring.
- Decompose – To break down or rot. When something like a leaf, food, or a dead plant or animal breaks into tiny pieces and becomes part of the soil again, it is decomposing.
Background Information
- Trees support human, animal, and plant life in many different ways:
- Trees give shade that helps smaller plants like ferns and moss grow.
- Fallen leaves turn into rich soil that feeds nearby plants.
- Trees are homes and food sources for animals like birds, squirrels, and insects. You might spot a squirrel nest (drey), a bird’s nest, or even a hollow where owls, raccoons, or insects live.
- Trees keep people and neighborhoods cool by providing shade and prevent erosion by holding soil in place with their roots.
- Being near trees helps people relax and feel calm.
- When you express gratitude, your brain releases dopamine and serotonin, boosting happiness and contentment. Gratitude also helps regulate cortisol, a stress hormone, leading to reduced anxiety and stress.
Reading Connections
Even More
- Family, Friends, & Forests: Talk about all the things we get from forests, including wood, food, fresh air, and places to play.
- Do Your Part: Some trees and plants have a rough life. Children can help care for them by watering during dry spells or spreading compost or mulch to provide nutrients.
- Career Exploration: Invite children to explore a green job involved in forest sustainability, such as TREE PLANTER. Professional and volunteer tree planters are critical for maintaining forests and growing urban forests. Provide child-size shovels, trowels, watering cans, or other planting tools, and encourage children to act out being tree planters by “planting” and watering sticks and other found natural items!
Gifts of Green
Download a one-page version of the activity. The download includes a list of materials, shortened steps, what children are working on, and a suggestion for adapting or expanding the activity.