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Leave the trees please

Leave the trees, please. 
Because the trees work with the breeze to put all living things at ease. 
So, leave the trees, please. 
You see, down in Somerset, England, I know a tree that is one thousand and five hundred years old. 
That is a wise tree. 
That is a tree I need to talk to. 
That is a tree we animals should listen to. 
Leave the trees, please. 
Because the trees work with the breeze to put all living things at ease. 
So, leave the trees, please. 
For millions of animals trees are a home. 
Trees make oxygen. 
Let me say that again. 
Trees make oxygen. 
So, make a tree your friend. 
Leave the trees, please. 
Because the trees work with the breeze to put all living things at ease.  
And they help the birds and the bees, old and wise all of these, so, leave the trees, please. 
Just leave the trees, please. 

by Benjamin Zephaniah 

Reflective Match

Action Challenge

10+ minutes / Inside

Explore emotional language and how words can make us feel through a forest inspired poem.
 

Learning outcome: Pupils will explore emotional literacy and wellbeing by interpreting poetic language and reflecting on how nature influences emotions and mental health.
 

HBN FAQ Slice

Instructions

  • Share the poem with the class, either reading aloud or asking a student to read if appropriate ability
     
  • Guide pupils to extract lines from the poem evoking emotion (e.g. loneliness, busyness, peace, connection)
     
  • Match each of these lines with how it makes them feel, then link to the environment (being in nature, specifically a forest in this case) and mental states (calm, content, reflective)
     
  • Discuss nature’s role in our emotional health, and our role in the health (and happiness) of nature
     
  • Optional add on: Figurative language - Read through poems and identify other aspects of language such as similes.
     

Adaptations

  • Use facial expressions, actions or drawings to express the emotions identified rather than writing it down
     
  • Use one line or verse of the poem 
     
  • Try a similar activity with a simpler poem if this one is too complex for your learners

Extensions

  • Record/perform the poem. Recordings could be shared at school assemblies/with parents/using talking buttons on wall displays if available
     
  • Poem Wellbeing: Read more poems together, pausing at keywords (e.g. quiet, breathe, rooted) and inviting pupils to close their eyes and picture the scene. 

Nature Poetry Studio

Creative Challenge

15+ minutes / Inside

Explore descriptive language, storytelling and how words can make us feel through a nature inspired poem
 

Learning outcome: Pupils will express personal experiences and emotions through creative writing, using descriptive language inspired by nature to develop confidence and communication skills.

Instructions

  • Share the poem with the class, either reading aloud or asking a student to read if appropriate ability
     
  • Instruct students to write their own forest-inspired poems
     
    • Create a class poem, with words and line contributed by different pupils
       
    • Encourage students to think about their experiences in nature for inspiration, calmness of a still lake, happiness of blooming flowers
       
    • If possible, take a nature walk before writing these

Adaptations

  • Speak poems only, if writing is a challenge
     
  • Use facial expressions, actions or drawings to express the emotions identified rather than writing it down
     
  • Try a similar activity with a simpler poem if this one is too complex for your learners
     
  • Mixed ability partner / groups

Extensions

  • Explore other forms of artwork/artists which use nature as inspiration
     
  • Display poems around the school to encourage others to get Happy By Nature too
     
  • Create Sensory journals and/or descriptive writing based off experiences listening or reading poetry

Browse activities

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