Celebrate Tu B'Shevat, the birthday of trees, in your neighborhood! This tree walk activity includes blessings and discussion questions. We’ve even included an indoor version for families experiencing winter weather.
(Optional) Preparation
To make this tree walk exciting for your kids, pick in advance four distinctly different trees around your house or in your neighborhood that are fun to visit on your walk. Consider printing out the discussion questions or instructions for each tree. Place each one in an envelope and tape each envelope onto a tree just before your walk begins. This will add to your family’s adventure!
Supplies
- A cell phone
- Several pieces of blank white paper
- Red or brown crayons
- TIP: Peel back each crayon’s wrapper a little bit.
- A sandwich bag or other small bag
Instructions
Before the tree walk officially begins make an announcement:
“There are four special trees growing in [name of your neighborhood, town, or city], and today is their birthday! Whoever wants to help the trees celebrate, follow me!”
After the announcement, walk to the first tree.
Tree 1
Reading:
Here in the ground it is cold and dark
And there’s no one around but us seeds
And just when we think there’s no way out —
We start to sprout
Up — And up — And up —
Slooooooow-ly … ‘til our heads break through —
And it’s light And it’s warm
And we soak — it — in
As we grow stems
Roots
Leaves
Shoots
Flowers
Fruits
And here we are alive and well
But there is something we can’t tell
‘Cause we’ve no mirror
So it’s not clear
What — we — are
Discussion:
The lovely tree you’re standing next to has grown a lot since it was a seed, but it has never been able to see itself. As a small birthday gift, tell this tree what it looks like: how tall it is; what color its trunk is; what shape its branches are; what its bark feels like; what its leaves, flowers, or fruit look like (or will look like in another season). Your description will make the tree happy.
Activity:
Take a selfie with the tree.
Now walk to the second tree.
Tree 2
Reading:
Here’s what a famous Jewish thinker named Martin Buber wrote (in simplified language):
I think about a tree. I think about its shape, its colors, how light moves through it. As I’m thinking about the tree, I can also start to feel connected to it. That’s when a tree becomes a friend.
Discussion:
Describe a time when you felt connected to a tree. Maybe it’s a tree you like to climb, look at, rest against, or hide behind. Maybe it’s a tree whose fruit you’ve picked or whose leaves you’ve played in. Maybe it’s a tree you only saw once on a visit somewhere, and you can still remember what you liked about it. Maybe it’s even a tree that you planted. Talk about a memory you have with that tree.
Activity:
While an adult holds a sheet of paper against the tree’s trunk, have kids rub crayons on the paper to capture the texture of the tree.
Walk to the third tree.
Tree 3
Blessing:
- Hebrew: Baruch ata Adonai, Eloheinu melech ha’olam, shekacha lo be’olamo.
- English: Dear God, Creator of our world, thank you for making a world filled with special things.
Discussion:
What are you most grateful for that comes from a tree? Which fruit that grows on a tree is one of your favorite things to eat? Or what’s something made from wood — a toy, a piece of furniture, something in your house — that you really enjoy? What else that a tree gives you — its shade, pretty leaves, or colorful flowers — do you especially love?
Activity:
Look at the ground near this tree. What’s a small souvenir you can take home that will remind you of this tree? It can be something that fell from the tree (don’t pick from the tree itself!) or a small bit of soil, grass, or rock you find near the base of the tree. Put it in your bag and take it home as a memory from your Tu B’Shevat tree walk.
Walk to the final tree.
Tree 4
Reading:
“Every Tu B’Shevat, exactly at midnight when the world is quiet, the trees reach out their branches to hug each other and wish one another a happy birthday.” – Sephardic legend
Discussion:
If you could give this tree one wish for the coming year, what would it be?
Activity:
Stand in a circle around the tree (or as far as your circle will go) and hold hands. Do a little birthday dance while singing “Happy Birthday” to the tree. If you can, sing “Happy Birthday” in another language as well.
Indoor version
Draw a few pictures of trees, then use them as your family enjoys one or more of the discussion topics.
More
Apply for a Get Together
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