Welcome! This is the ninth part of a ten-part Video and Blog Post Series, aligned with the songs on “Songs for Tree”. You can find an overview and all of the other posts to date in this series here. Let’s explore the power of song to connect children with the land!
Music Video
Here is the lyrics video! It features my dear friend, Joy the Robin.
Introduction
“What Kind of Leaves” is the sister song to “Green Leaf” from Songs for Tree. In the Fall, children were encouraged to make observations about all of the different kinds of leaves that were falling to the ground, and now, in the Spring, they are encouraged to consider what kind of leaves might be coming back! This is a sweet, simple song that connects children with the excitement of Spring, and in this post I’ll share my experiences and thoughts about how to use this song to nurture a relationship with the land.
Inquiry-Based Learning
“What Kind of Leaves” can support inquiry-based learning in a number of ways. If the concept of inquiry-based learning is new to you, I invite you to check out the Introduction post to this blog series. In general, it is about stepping into the process of learning alongside children, and “What Kind of Leaves” can support you with that in Spring. Here are a few ideas!
🍃 BEFORE A WANDER 🍃
This is a fun little song to sing with children before heading outside to investigate all of the new growth happening in the land. As I sing with children, I ask them to make predictions about what kind of leaves we might see. Unprompted, I find children will focus on the different colour of leaves. So I like to support them in thinking about leaves in different ways- for example:
What size leaves might we find?
What shape of leaves might we find?
What texture of leaves might we find?
I then use their ideas as we sing together. For example, if a child suggests we might find ‘fuzzy’ leaves, we will sing together:
Will the fuzzy leaves come back?
If I go for a walk, will they tickle my back?
Will the fuzzy leaves comes back?
Another way you might engage children in this kind of thinking is to listen and watch the video for “What Kind of Leaves”, and then ask children to share their ideas about what kind of leaves they think they might see when you go for a wander, and collect all of those ideas on paper.
No matter how you do it, I find connecting children with “What Kind of Leaves” before heading out for a wander really whets their appetite to look closely at changes in the land when we get outside!
🍃 DURING A WANDER 🍃
“What Kind of Leaves” is an easy song to bring out with you on a wander, as it is a simple, singable song. Starting to sing it while you are outside can prompt children to turn their focus to looking for new growth. They will look to see if any of the predictions they made before the wander are correct, and it’s pretty exciting for them when they find out many are! It’s also a lot of fun to see children connect with the leaves in new ways, finding new vocabulary to describe what they are noticing, now that they are looking closely. Suddenly, leaves are no longer just ‘green’; now they might be ‘soft’, ‘rainbow coloured’, ‘long’ or ‘smooth’! I really enjoy this, as to me, it means I’m witnessing their relationship with trees growing as the children get to know them better.
🍃 AFTER A WANDER 🍃
I enjoy singing this song with children after a wander, as it gives them an opportunity to reflect on their experiences and to share what they noticed. It is also a way for their growing relationship with the land to be expressed through song.
I also like to revisit the predictions that were made before we went for a wander about what kind of leaves they thought they would see. At this time, children might want to adjust the list, adding to it or taking some ideas away.
Curriculum Connections
Through all of the above activities, all sorts of opportunities open up to connect children with curriculum. Here are just a few ideas:
LITERACY
There are many ways to document what kind of leaves the children are looking for and noticing, and lots of opportunities to connect with Literacy! Some ideas:
🔍 Create a group photo journal of the different leaves children notice, and invite them to write about them in the journal.
🔍 Offer children their own nature journal to draw pictures and write about the leaves they are noticing. The journals can be brought outside as the days get warmer.
🔍 Create a bulletin board that captures photos, drawings and children’s words about the leaves they are noticing.
SCIENCE & MORE LITERACY
🔍 Noticing the diversity of leaves is a great opportunities to learn more about different species of trees and how to identify them. It can be an opportunity to introduce field guides to children. The University of Guelph has created some great one-sheet identification sheets that are laminated and so easy for young children to hold and use. They also name the different tree species in English, French and Anishinaabemowin!
🔍 If children are keen to learn about the different kinds of trees in your area, it can be fun to work with them to create their own Tree Field Guide!
Final Thoughts & Support
I hope this post has sparked some ideas for you to connect children with nature during this exciting time of the year. As always, please feel welcome to drop a comment or send me a note!
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Thank you for being here and taking the time to take in this work. I hope it sparks some fun and wonder in your days.
Warmly,
Tiiu
Land Heart Song 