Book List: Books About Trees

It’s hard to imagine our world without trees. Silent and towering, they give us far more than we give them. Our children have a natural fascination with trees, from the time they are very young. This week we celebrate these magnificent plants with a list of books that we hope will inspire and cultivate awe and the desire to give trees the care and love they deserve.

Trees by Carme Lemniscates

Lemniscates’ stunning illustrations are the star of this book for young children. Infants, toddlers, and preschool-aged children will enjoy the simple text and the basic plot of trees changing during different seasons. 

Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf by Lois Ehlert

This book has been loved by generations of children. In lieu of more typical illustrations, Ehlert utilizes interesting materials to create collage on each page. Children will learn important factual information about the lives of trees, specifically within the context of the narrator’s beloved sugar maple. 

Maple by Lori Nichols

Maple is the name of a young girl, but it is also the type of tree her parents planted in celebration when she was born. Maple and her tree grow up together, and as an only child, her tree often serves as a trusted companion. Maple does not remain an only child forever, and her trusty tree helps ease her into sisterhood (with baby Willow).

Who Will Plant a Tree? by Jerry Pallotta, illustrated by Tom Leonard

Renowned children’s author Jerry Pallotta created this book to teach young children how many living things unknowingly help plant seeds. Tom Leonard’s illustrations help convey the various ways seeds might hitch a ride: stuck to fur or feathers, buried, dropped, pushed along in the water, and (much to children’s delight) pooped out. 

The Lumberjack’s Beard by Duncan Beedie

This adorable book will have readers giggling for sure, but it also conveys an important message. A lumberjack inadvertently displaces several animals from their homes, and after inviting them to live in his beard for a while, he experiences a change of heart and goes about righting his wrongs.

The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest by Lynne Cherry 

A young man enters the rain forest intent on cutting down a kapok tree. Lulled to sleep by the heat of the jungle, he rests against the tree’s trunk for a nap. While he sleeps, various animals whisper their pleading requests that he reconsider. When he awakes, finding himself surrounded by those he dreamed about, he decides to leave the tree (and all those who rely on it) alone. 

Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story From Africa by Jeannette Winter

Wangari grew up “...under an umbrella of green trees in the shadow of Mount Kenya in Africa.” She was fortunate enough to have an excellent education, eventually traveling to the United States to earn degrees in biology and science (as well as advanced degrees in Germany and Kenya). Upon returning home to Kenya, she was shocked to find the trees she once loved had vanished. Ignoring the naysayers, she taught the women of Kenya to plant one tree at a time, creating economic independence for families and restoring the natural state of her beloved nation.

The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever by H. Joseph Hopkins, illustrated by Jill McElmurry

Born in the mid-nineteenth century, Kate Sessions adored trees. She grew up surrounded and inspired by them. She attended UC Berkeley, where she was the first woman to receive a degree in science. A move to San Diego, which was mostly barren in terms of trees at the time, inspired her life’s work. With the cooperation of city officials she began planting a wide variety of trees, some of which remain to this day. Sessions transformed both the landscape of the city and the perspectives of its people.

Ultimate Explorer Field Guide: Trees by Patricia Daniels

Created specifically for children, this field guide is filled with enticing illustrations, diagrams, photographs, and helpful information. Beginning with some important general information about trees, the book covers a wide variety of the more popular trees one might encounter. Created by Daniels for National Geographic Kids, this book is an excellent option for kindergarten and early lower elementary children.

Peterson Field Guides to Eastern Trees and Western Trees

Peterson’s field guides are, in our opinion, some of the best available. If your child is interested in trees, or if you would like to try identifying some near you, these books will prove to be invaluable. Montessori children are accustomed to classifying and identifying various organisms due to their in-depth study of biology; field guides are an excellent resource to support curious learnings and those who love nature.

Container Gardening with Children: Botany, Responsibility, Food Preparation, and Compassion

If you’re an avid gardener, you’ve likely already started your seeds and planned out your raised beds. You know the sweet reward of eating a sunshine-warmed tomato in the middle of summer, and you’ve seen the many benefits for you and your family that extend far beyond the tasty produce.

But if you don’t consider yourself a green thumb? Curious but never felt like you had the time? Are extensive beds not an option for you? Or would you rather start small before committing to anything large? Regardless of the reason, container gardening is an excellent option for everyone. A container garden can be as simple as a single potted marigold on the porch, vegetables, fruits, herbs, and flowers taking over every possible square inch of your outdoor space, or (most likely) something in between.

Growing a container garden with your children is simpler than you might think, and it’s an enriching experience that will give them skills to last a lifetime. Check out this video for some inspiration:

Expanding Upon the Botany Curriculum

All Montessori classrooms infuse botany into the environment, lessons, and work options. By starting a container garden you are making an authentic bridge between home and school. Your child will have hands-on experiences that will bring skills to life, building on their prior knowledge and giving them even more.

Interested in making direct connections to the Montessori botany curriculum? Here are some tips: 

• Point out and name the parts of plants.

• Help your child learn to identify various plants.

• Discuss what plants need to survive and how you can help your plants meet those needs.

• Compare different leaf shapes.

• Talk about plant attributes: annuals versus perennials, vine growth form versus herbaceous, or how individual plants change over time.

• Make math connections: make predictions, take measurements, collect and chart data.

• Teach your child about how plants reproduce, and make connections with the organisms that assist in the process. 

Nurturing Responsibility

It may seem obvious, but having a garden (no matter how small) is a great way to teach your child about responsibility. Caring or not caring for plants produces natural consequences in the purest form. If your plants are consistently watered, weeded, and given the correct amount of sunlight, chances are they will flourish and produce beautiful results. Neglected plants, however, and likely to shrivel up and die rather quickly.

It would be totally normal for your child to show excitement and enthusiasm when you first begin gardening. After a week or two, their desire to participate is likely to wane. Use this as an opportunity to talk about what responsibility means. Let them know that the plants are counting on their help to stay alive. Develop structures that will help your child be successful: this could be as simple as daily verbal reminders to water the plants, or you could have a chart on the wall for them to refer to. It goes without saying, but the level of independence we can expect depends largely on their developmental plane.

Building Opportunity for Food Preparation

In a Montessori primary environment, food preparation is a part of the daily routine. Children learn to spread, slice, mix, and create simple snacks for themselves and others. Even in the older grades, many Montessori schools find ways to bring food preparation into their work. This may take the form of preparing lunch for one another, creating birthday walk snacks, or trying various cultural recipes for different world celebrations.

Growing your own food, even if it’s just a few cucumbers, gives your child a chance to extend their food preparation work at home. By learning to create snacks and meals, they are building one of the most critical life skills we can give them. Not only does this create a sense of self-sufficiency, it also gives children an opportunity to care for the other people in their family. Preparing and sharing food together strengthens bonds (and it’s so much tastier if you have grown the food yourself!) 

Cultivating Compassion

For those of us who love Montessori, supporting the growth of the whole child is so much more important than focusing on academics alone. Do our kids need to learn to add and read? Of course they do. They also need to learn how to be kind human beings. The best way to teach this is to make sure they are surrounded by patient and supportive adults who model their best.

Another wonderful way to cultivate compassion is to teach your child the importance of caring for another living thing. Pets are one common way families try this, but caring for plants is another. Over time, even young children will begin to understand that a living organism depends on them.

Have you heard that plants may react positively to certain sounds, including classical music and human voices? 

If you have been debating whether or not to start gardening with your child, we hope this video has given you the courage to try it out! We can’t wait to hear how it goes.

A Book List for Budding Botanists

Where would we be without plants?  Botany is a major area of study in the Montessori curriculum, and children everywhere are fascinated by the magic of seeds, flowers, and growing plant life.  Interested in finding some books to support this learning?  Check out these ten titles and let us know what you think! (Click on the book images to go to that book’s Amazon page)

The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle

Against all odds, a tiny seed travels and grows to become a gorgeous flower.  This delightful children’s classic covers factual topics within a storytelling format.  Though many seeds may set out on their journey, few grow to complete their life cycle.  

My Garden by Kevin Henkes

A little girl daydreams as she helps her mother in the garden.  She imagines that in her garden, she wouldn’t have to worry about rabbits eating the lettuce because the rabbits would chocolate and she could eat them.  The tomatoes would be as big as beach balls and the carrots would be invisible (because she doesn’t like carrots).

From Seed to Plant by Gail Gibbons

This fantastic nonfiction text helps children understand the basics of seeds and flowers.  It’s bright illustrations, clear diagrams, and informative text covers topics like the parts of a flower, pollination, how seeds travel, and the stages of growth.

How a Seed Grows by Helene J. Jordan, illustrated by Loretta Kropinski

This sweet book shows two children as they plant a dozen bean seeds and observe throughout their growth.  While the book gives clear directions on how to repeat the experiment, children can learn a lot just from reading.  If you would like to follow along with the steps, gather some bean seeds, a bit of soil, and a dozen egg shells.

The Magic School Bus Plants Seeds by Joanna Cole, illustrated by Bruce Degen and John Speirs

Fans of the Frizz won’t be disappointed with this title!  The class has grown their own garden and goes on an adventure, with the bus first turning into a ladybug to get an up-close look at a flower.  They then shrink down to the size of a grain of pollen, hitching a ride on the leg of a bee and traveling down a pollen tube to learn how seeds are made.

Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney

A book that may inspire both you and your child, Miss Rumphius is a classic that everyone should read.  Little Alice grows up, travels the world, comes home to live by the sea, and sets out to do the most difficult thing of all: do something to make the world more beautiful.  Almost by accident she discovers that planting lupine seeds around her town is just the act of beauty she had been searching for.    

Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas by Cheryl Bardoe, illustrated by Jos. A. Smith

For children in upper elementary, middle school, and perhaps even beyond, this picture book tells the story of how humble friar Gregor Mendel founded our scientific understanding of genetics.  Using pea plants, Mendel discovered how traits play an important part in biology.  While the importance of his work was not recognized until after his death, it played a major part in our understanding of the world.

A Weed is a Flower by Aliki

This book begins by describing the unfortunate beginnings of Carver’s life, including being born into slavery and taken by night raiders.  Following abolition, Carver lived with his former owners for a number of years, and it was during this time that he cultivated a love for plants.  His curiosity and desire to further his education led him to work hard throughout his life, eventually becoming a professor at the Tuskegee Institute.  It was here that Dr. Carver learned much about plants and attempted to impart his findings on the farmers of Alabama.  He advocated for crop rotation as a means of long-term soil care, and studied crops such as sweet potatoes and peanuts to find ways to make them more useful and appealing to farmers and consumers.

Who Was Beatrix Potter? by Sarah Fabiny

Did you know that Potter not only wrote charming children’s books, but she was also a conservationist?  During a time when women’s studies in science were not taken seriously, Potter worked to find ways to make her findings heard.  She adored animals and plants, and strove to find ways to preserve nature for generations to come.

Treecology by Monica Russo, photographs by Kevin Byron

Detailed, informative, and engaging, this book delivers a combination of facts and activities that children can try to learn about trees.  It received an honorable mention for the National Outdoor Book Awards and was named a 2017 Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12.  While all children will enjoy this book to some extent, those who are in grades 3 and above would likely get the most out of it.

As always, we would love to hear your feedback after reading some of these books.  We would also love to hear about any others you think should be on the list!  Happy reading!