Option 1: Read aloud Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring the Earth to Life by Molly Bang and Penny Chisholm (in the Additional Resources). Invite students to write down three to five key points from the reading, and use them to make a diagram or illustration that might serve as the cover of the book.
Option 2: Invite students to start seeds for planting in the school garden, using the best techniques they learned from the activity.
Option 3: Create models explaining the role of leaves in photosynthesis. See the 3D Tree Leaf Model from Kessler Science as an example.
Option 4: Ask students to compare how much oxygen an “average” person needs with the amount an “average” tree produces. (An average person uses approximately 1.05 pounds (0.39 kg) of oxygen each day, while an average tree releases about 0.06 pounds (0.02 kg) per day.)
Option 5: Arrange a visit to a nursery or orchard to see trees in various stages of growth and to find out about the needs of different trees.
Option 6: Have students select a tree suitable for the school grounds and research a good place to plant the tree so that it thrives.
Option 7: Visit a nearby nature area to look for a variety of plants.
See Additional Resources for more ideas to enrich this activity.
