Moje stablo, moja priča/My Tree, My Story

My Tree, My Story

Activity for the European Sustainable Development Week

Description of the activity

As part of the European Sustainable Development Week, a tree-observation activity will be carried out with students and kindergarten children in the immediate surroundings of the school and kindergarten, drawing on the methodology of the international LEAF programme (Learning about Ecosystems and Forests). The activity is designed around all four steps of the LEAF methodology and naturally builds day by day over the course of the week.

Step 1 – Look and Observe

Each child, or a small group of children, chooses one tree in the school yard, a park, or the kindergarten grounds to follow throughout the week. The children carefully observe the tree's appearance – the shape of its crown, the colour and texture of its bark, the shape of its leaves – and record their observations through simple sketches or photographs.

Step 2 – Explore

Over the following days, the children deepen their exploration: they collect fallen leaves of different shapes and colours, look for signs of insects, bird nests, or other traces of life, and note the changes their tree undergoes from day to day. Alongside this, the students catalogue all the tree species present in the school and kindergarten surroundings and collect a characteristic leaf, twig, or fruit from each species for a shared herbarium.

Step 3 – Analyse

At the end of the week of observation, the children compare their findings which trees had the greatest variety of leaf shapes, which attracted the most insects or birds, how the leaves differed from tree to tree. Through a short discussion or drawing, they connect what they have observed with the significance trees hold for air quality, shade, wildlife habitat, and the appearance of the environment around the school or kindergarten. The students then process the collected material and, for each identified tree species, write a short entry its name (in Croatian and, where possible, Latin), the appearance of its leaf and bark, its habitat, and an interesting fact creating the pages of a shared herbarium.

Step 4 – Act and Progress

As a concluding, concrete action, the children create a simple "tree ID card", which they place next to their tree, featuring its name, an interesting fact, and a message about caring for nature. The activity is further connected to the wider community through cooperation with Hrvatske šume (Croatian Forests), which includes organising the planting of a new tree in the kindergarten and school yard as a lasting symbol of the care learned during the week. At the end of the week, the children present the activity – briefly sharing what they learned about "their" tree, exchanging observations with one another, and presenting the newly planted tree as a joint contribution to the sustainability of their school and kindergarten.

Extension of the activity: a shared herbarium and exhibition

The activity is extended through the creation of a shared herbarium of all tree species catalogued in the school and kindergarten surroundings. Preschool-age children from the kindergarten also take part in making the herbarium, contributing by collecting leaves and through simpler creative work such as leaf prints, colouring, and collage, which makes the activity intergenerational and adaptable to different age groups. The finished herbarium is then presented in two ways: as an online book, i.e. a digital collection featuring photographs of leaves, species descriptions, and children's work, made available on the school and kindergarten website, and as a live exhibition on the school or kindergarten premises, where the herbarium pages and children's work are physically displayed for parents, the local community, and other students. The entire activity is carried out in cooperation with Hrvatske šume, Drniš branch office, whose expert knowledge of local tree species can contribute to the making of the herbarium, and who may also take part in opening the exhibition or donating a sapling for the concluding phase of the project.

Objectives of the activity

The activity develops observation and inquiry skills in relation to nature close at hand, fosters children's emotional connection with their local environment, and raises awareness of the importance of trees and ecosystems for sustainable living. Creating the herbarium and presenting it through an online book and an exhibition develop research, artistic, and presentation skills, and bring children of different ages together in joint work. Through cooperation with Hrvatske šume, Drniš branch office, and the tree planting, children gain first-hand experience of taking concrete action for the environment, thereby completing all the steps of the LEAF methodology from observation and exploration to analysis and action.

Target group

Secondary school students, and kindergarten-age children - preschoolers.

Link to the Sustainable Development Goals

Goal 15 – Life on Land, Goal 4 – Quality Education.

Cooperation and implementation

The activity is carried out in cooperation with Hrvatske šume, Drniš branch office, which provides expert support for making the herbarium, takes part in the tree planting in the school and kindergarten yard, and, where possible, in opening the exhibition. It requires no special equipment beyond what the children already have (paper, pencils, herbarium materials, and, where possible, a camera or mobile device), and can be carried out within a single school lesson or spread across the whole week, depending on the time available and the age of the participants.