Meet-a-Tree

Educator's Corner

TorahTrek Guide Josh Lake shares "Meet-a-Tree," a game that builds community and fosters a love of nature, while introducing the tree as a symbol of Jewish law, tradition and thought.​

Objectives:

1. To develop tactile, olfactory and other senses.
2. To foster the development of a personal relationship with nature.
3. To build a community of learners with a shared experience 
4. To enhance trust amongst campers.
5. To introduce the tree as a symbol present in Jewish law, tradition and thought.

​Type of activity:  Game
​Source: Adapted from Joseph Cornell, Sharing Nature: Nature Awareness Activities for All Ages
Time:  10-20 minutes
When to play:  Day

Where to play:  Outside
Age level:  7 years and up
Players needed:  6-20 (or more)
Materials needed:  Bandanas are optional, area with trees

How to play: 

• Have campers pair off and give each pair a blindfold.  
• Blindfold one of the pair.  The sighted camper leads their partner to a tree that interests him – he should lead his/her partner to the tree in an indirect way to make it more interesting.
• Make sure the sighted camper takes care of their sight-impaired partner.  There is a Jewish value here, and it comes from Leviticus 19:14, “do not place a stumbling block before the blind.”  THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE!  
• The blindfolded camper explores the tree, trying to imprint the tree’s characteristics in his/her mind so he’ll be able to find the tree again.  Encourage the camper’s exploration by suggesting that s/he: 
  • Feel for plants growing on or around it, feel for signs that animals use the tree
  • Feel the bark.  How thick is it?  Is it rough or smooth? 
  • Put your arms around the tree to measure it
  • Smell the tree
• To add humor, you can suggest campers can lick the tree, kiss the tree, speak with the tree, etc. 
• Once the blindfolded camper feels they know the tree well, the sighted partner will lead her/him back to the starting place.  
• Encourage campers to take a different route back, stepping over imaginary rocks, ducking under pretend branches, etc. – make it a fun challenge for the blindfolded camper to find his/her tree.  
• Once back at the starting point, remove the blindfold and the camper tries to find the tree with his/her eyes open.  Then have the partners switch roles.

Debrief: There are a variety of discussions that can ensue once the group is back together again.

• Each camper can lead the group to his/her tree to showcase something unique about it.  This can take a while, so you may ask for only 2-3 people to show their trees.
• Ask campers to talk about what senses they used to explore their tree. 
• Ask campers to talk about what methods they used to figure out which tree was theirs once they opened their eyes – memory of their path, smell of the area, feeling plants around the tree, etc.
• Begin a conversation about the roles of trees in the environment – are there characteristics of their trees that help them understand those roles – nook used as a dwelling place for animals, leaves as the place of conversion of carbon dioxide to oxygen, roots holding the soil in place, etc.?  
• Do the campers notice anything Jewish about the trees?  Introduce examples of trees as symbols in Jewish law, tradition and thought.  Here are a few examples:
  • The Mitzvah of Bal Tashchit (the law against waste found in Dueteronomy 20:19), 
  • Eitzim– the “trees” on which the Torah scroll is rolled
  • JNF and planting trees in Israel
• Why do we call the Torah Etz Haim in Hebrew?

Hints for success:

• Say it in your own words.  You can speak your own words most clearly.  Don’t like the way this is written, rewrite it!
• Perhaps read The Giving Tree or The Lorax before or after the program in order for campers to think more about trees.  Try reading The Apple Tree’s Discovery (see below).
• For more Jewish content, include a blessing like the "She'hechianu" for the first time playing this game.
• Have fun, this is a game and should be treated like one!

Post Script
Here is a great story about an apple tree finding something within herself.  You can read this book to your campers before or after the activity.  The Apple Tree's Discovery, Peninnah Schram and Rachayl Eckstein Davis, Kar-Ben Publishers (January 2012)