Transforming Tree: Tracking Change through the Seasons

Research Question:

What do the trees in your neighborhood look like as the seasons change throughout the year?

Materials:

• One large, flat piece of wood or particle board
• A method of attaching the board securely to the wall
• Paint and brushes
• Large piece of felt, brown, black, or the color of tree bark in your neighborhood
• Scissors
• Strong wood or craft glue
• Self-stick velcro dots
• Trees
• Lots of time

Experimental Procedure:

1. Paint a landscape background, sky, etc. on your board. You should make it look like the landscape outside your window as you will be using this board to track the changes of seasons in your neighborhood. Make it lovely – this becomes a decoration as well as a science project, and you will be looking at it all year.
2. From the felt cut a large (enough to fill most of the board) tree trunk and branches. You will want to make these disproportionately wide as this is the area you will have to attach your collections.
3. Glue the felt tree trunk onto the board.
4. Hang the board securely on a wall, low enough for everyone to reach.
5. Outside, collect leaves, seeds, sticks, flowers, whatever comes from the trees in your neighborhood. While you’re doing this, notice what the trees look like.
6. Back inside, stick the prickly half of the velcro dots onto the leaves, etc. that you have collected. Some heavy items may require more than one dot.
7. Using the velcro, stick your collection onto the felt tree trunk. You now have a beautiful indoor representation of what’s going on in the world outside.
8. Repeat steps 5-7 as often as you like, changing what’s on your inside tree as the trees outside change.

Terms/Concepts: change, seasons