For this activity you will need brown paper bags (one per child), a pair of scissors and paint / markers (optional).

Distribute scissors and one paper bag to each child. Tell them to leave the bag folded and closed. Using scissors, make four evenly spaced cuts from the top (open) end of the bag until they are three-quarters of the way down to the bottom (see picture).

Once the cuts are finished, open the bag up so the bottom expands to its full size. Then, using your fingers, press firmly around the edges of the bottom to create a solid base for your tree to stand on. This will serve as the roots of the tree.

Once your base is solid, hold it in one hand, and with the other hand start twisting the rest of the bag in one direction. This will create the trunk of the tree.

Once your trunk is solid, create branches by separating the strips created by the 4 cuts, and twisting each of these on their own. You can experiment with twist tightness and direction, giving your tree a wide array of branches.

Use markers or paint to add leaves to your tree.

Once your tree is decorated present it to your family and friends and discuss what the tree means to you.

For this activity you will need paper, crayons, different coloured paints and paint brushes.

Explain to your child/children that today you will be doing an activity about age and how to measure it. Open The Giving Tree and ask about the age of the boy. How old do you think he is? How can you tell? Flip through the pages as he gets older and older, and have your child/children point out the details that Silverstein uses to show his age (height, beard, hair, etc.).

Flip to the page where you can see the growth rings of the tree. Use the “Tree Ring Info” download to explain and discuss what growth rings or “Annual Growth Rings” are with your child/the children. Next, distribute paper and crayons. Have each child start with a small circle in the middle of their paper. This represents them from birth to their first birthday. Then, they should add a new ring for each year of their life (i.e. 7 rings if they are 7 years old). Your child/children should push down hard with the crayon, as this will be important later on.

For younger children, simple drawing rings may be enough. For older children, encourage them to draw symbols or write words that represent the different sorts of growth they experienced in each year of their life. If they had another sibling born, perhaps they can draw a baby. If they lost a relative, perhaps they can honour them by writing their name or drawing a picture of them.

Once all the drawing is done, distribute the paint and paint brushes. Your child/children can use the paint to fill in their trees and pictures, and also observe as the wax of the crayons resist the paint, leaving their lines and symbols unchanged.

Hang the paintings in a safe place to dry. Present the finished product to your family and friends and explain what you have drawn.

For this activity you will need magazines, paper (lined or blank) and pencils. Open the activity with a discussion of the relationship between the boy and the tree in The Giving Tree. Once you have discussed the different sort of relationships, distribute magazines, paper, and pencils to your child/children.

Ask your child/children to flip through their magazine and look for a picture displaying some sort of relationship. It can be two people, one person and nature, two animals, an animal and a tree, or anything. Then, have them spend a few minutes imagining what the relationship in the picture is about and apply their own story to the picture.

Once they have come up with a basic story idea, have your child/children write down the relationship they imagined (note: young children who are not yet reading and writing can either draw pictures or pure imagination to record their story). How did the relationship start? What emotions were shared? Is it a respectful relationship? Why or why not? How did the relationship change over time?

After your child/children have had enough time to develop their stories, allow them to present their stories to the group or to you and explain the relationship they imagined in it. They should talk about whether they think the relationship is healthy or unhealthy, and why, using details they created.

For this activity you will need paint, materials from the natural environment (twigs & soil), pencils, crayons, glue, an A4 piece of white paper as well as coloured paper (green).

On the coloured piece of paper, ask the children to draw 3 outlines of their own hands. If you don’t have a piece of green coloured paper, use a white piece of paper that has been coloured in with green paint or crayons. Remember to leave it to dry if you do use paint.

On another piece of plain A4 paper, ask the child/children to draw the outline of a big tree trunk using their pencils. They should remember to leave room for the branches and leaves.

Gather the twigs and soil collected from the natural environment and paste these with glue to decorate the trunk outline.

Once it is dry, stick the hand outlines on the top of the tree trunk to form the branches of the tree.

Prepare the children’s paints and show them how to use their fingers to stamp the paint onto the tree branches. These will become the leaves and fruit on their trees. Once the children have completed their trees, ask them to explain what is growing on their trees and why they chose the colours that they did.